September
20, 2018
Cicillia Agowa, 45, is a South
Sudanese refugee currently living in Omugo Extension of Rhino Camp Refugee
Settlement. Cicillia is originally from Yei, South Sudan where she operated a
large restaurant. She arrived in Uganda in October 2016, after escaping war and
famine with 6 children, 3 biological and 3 adopted.
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Cicillia
with two of her children outside her
semi-permanent shelter.
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This isn’t the first time Cicillia
has been a refugee, but it is her first time being a refugee in Uganda. “I first moved to Congo [Democratic Republic
of…] where it took me 22 days to reach. I stayed for 1-year but it was very
hard because there were no schools for my children," Cicillia said. “Then I started hearing of more killings in
South Sudan, including my nephew. I decided I was still too close to the war so
I decided to move again to Uganda. This took us 6 days.” Cicillia says this second travel was even more
challenging than the previous longer one because she had young children, often
carrying them on her back. She also had no food or water making walking much
more challenging.
When Cicillia and her children
arrived in Uganda, they were given a temporary shelter, made of a simple wooden
frame and covered with tarpaulin. These shelters are designed to last only 3 to
6 months and often do not last that long due to strong weather conditions. These
shelters also do not have doors, allowing for anyone to enter at anytime, a
major concern for Cicillia. “This house
was next to the road and next to a disco [bar]. One night drunk men tried to
enter into my home to rape me. This would have been very easy because I had no
door to keep them out.” Thankfully, the young men struggled trying to enter
her home and she was able to scream very loud, alerting neighbors of her
danger. As the neighbors came, the men ran away. While Cicillia was not physically
harmed that night, she never forgot how she felt and the danger she was in; she
even contemplated suicide because she was suffering so much. On top of all
that, Cicillia was also not able to leave her home to receive food rations and
other non-food items for distribution, because thieves could enter into her
home. She was also not able to attend community meetings or engage in socio-economic
activities.
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| Cicillia
meeting with a CARE Staff and translator |
However, Cicillia knew she could
not give up. She started praying for help and finally her prayers were
answered. “One day I saw of group of
people, including CARE, coming toward my house. They started asking me
questions, I can’t even remember what those questions were! After a few months,
CARE came back and asked me where I wanted my new shelter to be constructed. I
was very surprised and happy.” Under a livelihoods and protection project
funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, CARE built 176 Semi-Permanent
Shelters in Omugo Extension for Persons with Specific Needs (PSNs).
In July 2018, Cicillia and her children
received a new semi-permanent shelter, consisting of two rooms, lockable windows,
and a lockable door. These shelters are also made of a wooden frame, however
the walls are built with local bricks and mud and a metal roof is placed for
extra protection.
"I am extremely happy for this shelter constructed by CARE. It has
sheltered me from bad winds and rain. Most importantly, it has provided me
protection against Gender Based
Violence (GBV). Since moving in, no one
has tried to harm me! I am safe now.”
Due to this shelter having a
lockable door, Cicillia is also able to leave for several hours and engage in
socio-economic activities. She is currently selling local banana pancakes and
other small food items to earn some money for her family.
“I
can smile now because of CARE’s shelter support,” says Cicillia. “My children and I are safe and happy.”
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