Rumbek Allocates Land To Returnees

16 February 2011 – (Rumbek) – The Ministry of Lands and Survey in Lakes state is allocating land to resettle returnees from Khartoum who arrived the state during the southern Sudan referendum period.

Speaking to SRS in Rumbek on Tuesday, the chief officer in the state Ministry of Land and Survey, Majak Mabor said the resettlement process will continue until every returnee has been resettled in the state.

[Majak Mabor Keer]. “We plan something to do with 202 pieces of land within which we will have all facilities. There will be a public latrine place, a play ground and there will be a water point. Today we started some of the relocation of the people who are living now in Comboni Primary school to leave the place and go settle to the place allocated to them. We are planning for it to be a permanent place. About 23 people were allocated land this morning (Tuesday) and we shall continue until everybody has gotten a place to settle.”

The director of the Southern Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission in Rumbek, Philip Kot told SRS on Tuesday that returnees in Comboni Primary school must be allocated land to settle before schools open in March.

[Philip Kot]: “The returnees who came from Khartoum and particularly those in Comboni Primary school because primary schools will be opened either in earlier week or in the middle of March. So we would like the school to be emptied such that when the school is emptied students must find their place cleared. We have made an example today by picking plots and by tomorrow (Wednesday) everybody in Comboni will come here with the task committee to pick their plots and allocated such that we finalize with the issue of plots for those who are coming from Khartoum. If there are people who have been left out we shall continue to look for land to allocate for them.”

Southern Sudan experienced an influx of returnees coming from the north in January.