(ERGO) – Displaced people living in Jowhar are complaining that the local authorities have forced their families into hardship by banning them from making a living from breaking and selling stones on a site near their camp.
Hussein Abdi Yusuf, 38, says his family of five children can barely get even one meal a day since he was left jobless by the ban on stone-breaking work.
He is among 250 displaced individuals living in Jiliyaale camp who were relying largely for their income from the sale of stones for construction that they sourced from old walls of Jowhar’s former sugar factory.
The Jowhar administration prohibited this activity in October following an accident in which an old structure collapsed killing one person and injuring two others.
However, the lack of income means Hussein has to depend on handouts from friends and relatives.
“We only cook for the children when food is available, and even having dinner is now a matter of luck. If we could get some assistance, our situation would be much better,” he said.
Hussein and his wife had been making $6-7 daily selling stones, which supported their household and paid the $12 monthly school fees for two of their children at Horseed School.
The school administration has temporarily allowed the children to continue attending classes, but Hussein worries about how to pay the overdue fees.
“I reach out to anyone I know, telling them my kids might be sent home from school because I don’t have the money,” he said.
Hussein’s family fled their farming livelihood in Jiliyaale in 2016 following clan conflict. Returning to farming is no longer an option, as tensions in the area persist. Most of the nearly 400 families in Jiliyaale camp are in a similar situation.
Osman Abdi Ali, 40, said his children were malnourished due to severe food shortage now he is out of work. His family survives on one meal a day, relying on donations from neighbours.
“If the authorities won’t let us work here and there are no other job opportunities, we’ll have to consider moving to a better place,” Osman said.
Two of his children were expelled from school after he failed to pay their $15 monthly fees.
“The stones we broke and cleaned were sold to construction sites for $5 to $7. But the administration has stopped us, leaving us with nothing else,” he complained.
As for Mohamud Mohamed Ali, another displaced worker, he is also worried that he will not be able to find other work to support his family of eight. The $27 school fees for his four children are overdue.
“The teachers told me pay the school fees if you want your children to attend their classes,” he said.
The Secretary of Jowhar administration, Mohamed Hassan Barise, stated that they had stopped the excavation and sale of stones from the old sugar factory in October because there had been deaths and injuries at the site.
However, some of the displaced people who had been working on the site said that private companies were now collection stones from the site with the administration’s approval. They said they had filed complaints but received no resolution or explanation from the authority.
The camp residents say that the administration originally permitted them to settle by the old sugar factory and therefore should ensure that they were able to make a living. For some, free water provided by Farjano Company is the only relief available in the IDP camp.
