By KT Reporter
Arua City and Koboko Municipality are set to receive more than US$1.1 million to support inclusive urban planning and resilience for displacement-affected communities. The announcement was made during the second Cities Alliance Regional Dialogue on Sustainable Integration of Displacement-Affected Communities (SUIDAC), held in Arua on Monday.
SUIDAC, supported by the European Union, aims to improve the lives of Displacement-Affected Communities (DACs) and strengthen municipalities’ capacity to adapt to human mobility. Currently, Arua City hosts 23,917 urban refugees, while Koboko Municipality accommodates 25,719 refugees, mainly from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. This has placed immense pressure on limited social services.
Under the 36-month project, Arua City will receive US$940,065, while Koboko Municipality has been allocated US$193,660 to implement interventions in the education, health, and business sectors. Florence Lozet, Urban Forced Displacement Lead and SUIDAC Program Coordinator at Cities Alliance, said the intervention will focus on promoting self-reliance, enhancing social cohesion, strengthening local governance, and supporting inclusive, people-centered policy implementation.
Dennis Asiku, SUIDAC focal person for Arua City, noted that key interventions will include construction of school structures, capacity building for school management, and provision of mental health and psychosocial support services.
In Koboko Municipality, SUIDAC focal person Joel Azabo said priority projects will include the construction of a two-storey, eight-classroom block with dormitories, vocational skills training for 230 vulnerable out-of-school youths, and the building of a market and livestock shelters.
Wilson Sanya, Mayor of Koboko Municipality, President of the Urban Authorities Association of Uganda (UAAU), and Head of Mayors in Uganda and East Africa, emphasized the need for purposeful integration of the nine African cities under SUIDAC to ensure sustainable, inclusive, and resilient program implementation.
The four-day dialogue in Arua has brought together administrators and representatives from nine cities hosting refugees and internally displaced persons. These include Arua City and Koboko Municipality in Uganda, Atbara in Sudan, Yei River State in South Sudan, Borama and Gabiley in Somalia, Jigjiga and Assosa in Ethiopia, and Kananga and Tshikapa in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The discussions are focused on the modalities of implementing the SUIDAC program.
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