Philemon Kudeera, the coordinator of the project, says that his colleagues were sensitized on the merits of the project and have since embraced it. He says that the construction of such a facility will boost safety sensitization drives across the Lake Victoria shoreline in Jinja and the surrounding areas.
The construction of the US$ 13million search and rescue center at Masese landing site in the Southern division in
Jinja city has got underway. A team
of Jinja city authorities led by the Resident City Commissioner, Kyeyune Ssenyonjjo commissioned the project on Thursday morning.
The project will come with standby divers, speed
boats, and a clinic that would enable
water accident victims to receive timely first aid services before they are referred to neighboring
health facilities for further management. The
World Bank is bankrolling the
construction through the Ministry of Works and Transport.
Philemon Kudeera, the coordinator of the project, says that his colleagues were
sensitized on the merits of the project and have since embraced it. He says that the construction of such a
facility will boost safety sensitization drives across the Lake Victoria shoreline in Jinja and the surrounding areas.
Jinja Resident City Commissioner, Kyeyune Ssenyonjjo argues that despite the presence
of the Field Force Unit-FPU
personnel, who are
mandated with ensuring that fishermen
use the authorized fishing gears on the lake, the majority of them still use undersize
boats, which have increasingly contributed to accidents.
An
average of six water accidents are registered
along Jinja Lake Victoria shores on a
weekly basis. He stresses that much as such accidents are not
entirely fatal, voluntary rescue teams comprising of majorly local fishermen
lack the expertise
to apply modern safety skills, which exposes the victims to severe injuries.
He says that the construction
of the rescue center will
boost such efforts. Nasser Ashiraf, the Mayor of Jinja South Division, says that the
operators of the center will run voluntary outreaches aimed at
sensitizing fishermen on essential water safety skills, which are paramount in
reducing accidents across the lake.
The Jinja City Deputy Clerk,
Peter Mawerere, says that the
11 project-affected persons have been since relocated to another location. Mawerere says that the project will also create employment
opportunities for a section of youths along the shoreline communities.
