Bridges to the Future
Story by Lydia Good, Programme Officer
"We have no school and no health clinic," says Soba, village leader of Lutembu. "The future for our children is not a bright one." Vital social services are needed by the people of Lutembu village in Lumbala Nguimbo municipality. Moreover, it is proving almost impossible to bring in the resources that are available, because the bridges surrounding the village have all been destroyed. The clear solution to this would be to rebuild the bridges, but when the land surrounding the bridge sites is contaminated by landmines and other unexploded ordnance (UXO), building the bridge to a better future for the people of Lutembu is not as safe or as simple as it first appears.
The humanitarian response to the problems of Lutembu and villages like it is comprehensive and very much a team effort. MAG directly addresses the issue of landmine and UXO contamination and, by working in partnership with other agencies, provides solutions for the wider concerns, such as the lack of good road networks. By improving roads for government bodies, including the Ministry of Health and international NGOs, such as Medair, we have facilitated the much needed food aid and health services to vulnerable communities.
The new bridge crossing the river Luanginga to the village of Lutembu
Since spring 2005, MAG has also been working with the World food Programme (WFP) in Angola to support its bridge reconstruction strategy. Using each agency's expertise, MAG and WFP have worked together to combat the colossal problem of access. Here MAG cleared the road to the bridge site and the area surrounding it coordination with Norwegian People's Aid (a demining agency), and WFP provided and built the new bridges. Only through the landmine clearance carried out by MAG's teams has WFP been able to reconstruct the bridges in safety. And only through the construction of these bridges can vital food and medical supplies reach vulnerable communities.
New bridges provide stepping-stones to a better road network and increased access which, in turn, will provide a better future for the people of Lutembu village.
