Prolonged water shortages disrupt life in Oyam

Oyam, Uganda:- Residents of Oyam Town Council in Northern Uganda’s Oyam District have turned to streams and boreholes to meet their domestic water needs after the piped water supply became unstable for nearly two months.

This disruption has affected businesses that depend heavily on water, including fruit vendors, hotels, lodges, and others.

The Northern Umbrella of Water and Sanitation (NUWS), responsible for operating and maintaining piped water systems in rural and urban areas across Northern Uganda, oversees the water supply in town councils. However, the current crisis has raised concerns within the community.

Stalon Olong, Chairperson of the Oyam Town Council Business Community, noted that businesses heavily dependent on water have experienced interruptions in their operations due to the shortages. “The prolonged water shortages have disrupted businesses across the town council, particularly those that rely heavily on water for their daily operations,” Olong said.

He added, “It’s becoming increasingly difficult for businesses to sustain operations under these conditions, and we are going to meet the management of Umbrella Water-Oyam to know the problem and take action so that this crisis is addressed.”

The crisis has also severely impacted schools. At Oyam Junior School, authorities have resorted to fetching water from distant sources located up to 2 kilometers away.

At Oyam Junior School, Morish Otyia, the headteacher, said the school spends approximately Shillings 120,000 weekly on fuel to transport water and sustain its operations.

“The school has been forced to spend 120,000 Shillings every week just on fuel to fetch water from sources 2 kilometers away. This water crisis is also draining our financial resources and impacting the students’ learning environment,” Otyia said.

Efforts to obtain a comment from the manager of the Northern Umbrella of Water and Sanitation-Oyam Branch regarding the timeline for water restoration were unsuccessful. But, Nelson Oloa, Chairperson of the Oyam Branch Water Board, attributed the ongoing crisis to constant power blackouts.

He further mentioned that the office of the Northern Umbrella is planning to adopt solar power as a solution to the recurring electricity outages that have exacerbated the problem.

“The constant power blackouts are the main cause of the water supply interruptions we’ve been experiencing. We are hopeful that the Northern Umbrella’s plan to adopt solar power will provide a sustainable solution to this recurring problem.” Oloa said.

Lack of clean water has far-reaching and severe impacts across various aspects of life, including Increases in the prevalence of waterborne diseases such as cholera, dysentery, and typhoid.

On Education, Children, especially girls, often miss school to fetch water, reducing attendance and academic performance, while economically, time spent fetching water reduces productivity, particularly for women and children among others, which requires sustainable solutions.