Yei Residents Demand Action on Waste Management to Protect Health and Restore Town’s Clean Image

(Yei) – Some local residents inside Central Equatoria State’s Yei town are calling on the local government to ensure proper waste disposal and management to prevent the outbreak of water and air born diseases in the area. Eresto Tabule a resident of Dar-el-salam neighborhood say the Payam and County often delays to transport waste and cabbage residues from the main market and some of the major streets inside the town. “My call to our government is that Yei town should be kept clean at all times. We want to see the waste from the markets and the streets collected timely to avoid bad small and spread of disease such as cholera and typhoid” he added Eresto said Yei town has been known as a “small London” in South Sudan but being tainted with a lot of waste all over degrades the image and standard of a popular Yei town” he lamented. Dusman Betty another resident of Sobe area said she is not happy seeing waste dumped in some of the residential areas and streets of Sobe area. “You see Sobe street is within the town square and it’s one of the be busy streets in the town and we want it kept clean without being listed with rubbish from thrown by shop owners on this busy street and we urge the county and Payam authorities to ensure that all forms of waste should be collected and taken to a far decomposition area outside the town” he charged. Dusman called on the local government to fine shop owners and residents who liters the streets of Yei town through heavy charges so that others can not repeat such practices. Amule Moses a resident of Hai Lomuku area condemned the practice of littering the streets of Yei town with wastes and demands the government to address the challenges without delays. ” We want to see Yei town kept and maintained clean without wastes being dumped on the streets and the town square” he stressed. Amule said, before the outbreak of the conflict in 2016, Yei has proper waste dumping site in Logobero area north of Yei town. ” We also call on development partners like GIZ and the county government to ensure that such waste dumping sites are operational and more other new waste dumping sites should be opened to protect the people and the environment from outbreak of diseases and environmental pollution and degredation” he noted. Joice Kiden another resident of Hai Tacha area said : This street is not good, there is too much small here up to Dar- el- salam market. The government should ensure that the waste is collected timely and decomposed in a distant area out of the town square.” On Saturday last week, the 14, June, 2025, internal development agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in collaboration with Global Obesity Patient Alliance (GOPA). Concluded a two workshop for over 20 public health and local government officials as well as community leaders on solid proper waste management in Yei town. The training aimed at empowering local leaders with the knowledge and skills to implement effective waste management systems in the area. For her part, Rose Duru Sube, Director for Yei Town Payam, urged citizens to practice proper waste management to prevent the breeding of disease vectors and reduce the spread of illnesses in the town. Meanwhile Imke Uander, Monitoring GOPA Team Leader, highlighted the value of the training in building local capacity for solid waste management. He said the overal goal of the training will lead to improvements in public health, environmental protection, and economic development. He further emphasized that the training seeks to equip local authorities with the necessary knowledge and skills to manage solid waste effectively, promoting a cleaner and healthier environment. Commissioner Emmanuel Taban Seme who spoke during the training emphasized the significance of trained local officials in ensuring proper waste collection, disposal, and treatment. He appreciated the community leaders of Gimonu Boma for availing a piece of land for construction of a waste management site in Yei town. Commissioner Seme told the participants that the county government is embarking on developing a strategic plan to ensure that there is proper waste management and public health measures implemented throughout the county.