The governor of Western Equatoria State last Friday pledged 5 million SSP for the rehabilitation of the vital Yubu Bridge.
Speaking to the media during an on-site visit to assess the condition of the bridge last Friday, Governor Alfred Futuyo, said the rehabilitation works require collaborative efforts with the local communities to ensure that the work is completed before August.
“We came and conducted the assessment before, so this time we have come to start the work on this bridge. As we agreed last time, the communities will provide the stones and sand. For us (government), we will collect money and build the bridge,” Governor Futuyo said. “We will be three teams-government, community, and the partners- and we will collaborate to build this bridge. On Monday we will start the work immediately. For us as a government, we have given 5 million SSP to start this work. I think before August this work will be completed.”
Meanwhile, the head of UNMISS in Western Equatoria State, Christopher Murenge, said the partners will support the government in rehabilitating the bridge so that the communities can have access to markets.
“We have come on assessment to look at the extent of the work needed. The first part of the bridge is still intact so our teams are going to conduct the assessment, working with the engineers from the ministry of roads and bridges as well as the county engineer and the communities to see what can be done and how best we can do it,” Murenge said.
Martin Pascal, a community leader in Sakure, said the poor stage of the Yubu Bridge has made the community face challenges because they could not access health services, markets, and schools during the rainy season.
“Our challenge is that when it comes to august, no one can travel along this road. It becomes very difficult for us to get food, medication, education, and go farming. We are happy to see Governor Futuyo among us and his commitment to serve his community. Last year there were floods and some children almost died. We want to thank the governor for his efforts,” Pascal said.
Yubu Bridge was built in 1972.