“Thirty years without service” Life in the outskirts of Kosti

Even those war-displaced decades ago in Sudan struggle with acquiring basic services and support from the former government, local residents told Ayin. Below are personal accounts of survival in the Kadugli area of Kosti City, White Niles State, predominantly inhabited by those displaced from the Nuba Mountains conflict in South Kordofan State.

Najwa Hakim Angelo

“Everything is very difficult – maybe if you eat today you won’t tomorrow,” says Nadjwa Hakim outside her makeshift house in Kadugli, Kosti. Like many of the residents here, Nadjwa was displaced by the conflict in South Kordofan, Nuba Mountains region during the first civil conflict between the government and Sudan People’s Liberation Movement / Army (SPLM/A) and came to Kosti, White Nile State in 1987. Najwa was fortunate enough to gain a government plot of land through a lottery system in 2000 but once she built her house, authorities took her newly built home and gave the land to another person. “I found the government gave my land to someone else without informing me. I lost my home. Now we don’t have anything, we are just waiting for God.”

Fathiya Trombil

“I live here for 30 years but I don’t have a house, all the time there are people coming from the government, writing our names down to provide a house but every time they record our names, they give us nothing,” said Fathiya Trombil. Fathiya says they routinely pay taxes for services but they receive nothing in return. “We don’t like the old government, we need this new government – we need to stop the [Nuba] conflict and forced recruitment into the army. We need a new country.”

Yusuf Imam Gai

“We don’t have any service here – we stay here just waiting for God,” says Yusuf Imam, showing a polluted pool of water outside his home.  After heavy rains and floods affected the area, stagnant water leading to an infestation of mosquitoes and malaria ensured. “You can’t sleep here, there are too many mosquitoes and no one owns a net.”  The influx of water and lack of drainage has also severely affected homes. “Everyday you hear of houses falling down due to the rains since the water leaks into homes.”

Jaffar Osman

“For 30 years without services and without humanitarian aid,” says Jaffar Osman, “I hope the new government will stand with us and the poor people in the Kadugli neighbourhood, by really working, not just talking. Together we can build our country.” One of the terrible ironies they face is the area is flooded with water….but they lack water to drink. Jaffar says they are forced to purchase drinking water via donkey-driven water carts. “One cart containing two barrels of water is 200 Sudanese Pounds while 100 Sudanese Pound is the equivalent to a family’s daily budget for survival.”

Hashim Altair

“I am studying at Abubakr Siddiq School in Rabak and in the holidays I sell water to help my family,” Hashim Mutahir said