Drinking water crises in West and South Darfur

The displaced, living in Murnei camp in Kereinik locality, West Darfur, are suffering from a drinking water crisis for a year. In El Jeer district, in South Darfur’s capital of Nyala, people complain about an acute lack of water since one month.
“The people have to walk 2 to 4km to collect water from the Azum, Bari, and Marnago valleys, since the paper pipes crashed one year ago,” the Murnei camp coordinator told Dabanga.
He said that most of the displaced do not own beasts of burden to carry the water. “We filed several complaints to the national WEST organisation, responsible for maintaining the water facilities, to no avail.”

The displaced, living in Murnei camp in Kereinik locality, West Darfur, are suffering from a drinking water crisis for a year. In El Jeer district, in South Darfur’s capital of Nyala, people complain about an acute lack of water since one month.

“The people have to walk 2 to 4km to collect water from the Azum, Bari, and Marnago valleys, since the paper pipes crashed one year ago,” the Murnei camp coordinator told Dabanga.

He said that most of the displaced do not own beasts of burden to carry the water. “We filed several complaints to the government’s Water and Environmental Sanitation (WES) Department, responsible for maintaining the water facilities, to no avail.”

South Darfur Water Corporation

In Nyala’s El Jeer district, the price per barrel rose from SDG6 ($1) to SDG12 within one month,” member of El Jeer Popular Committee, Ali Mohamed Sharif, reported to Dabanga.

He said that despite an increase of the monthly water tariff to SDG51 ($8.50) by the South Darfur Water Corporation, nothing has been done to restore the provision of water in the district. “We have submitted a written complaint, but it seems that no one cares about it.”

“The Water Corporation is spending the people’s money unlawfully,” he added.

Related: Acute drinking water crisis in West Darfur’s Murnei camp, 15 May 2014