The village of Kyarumba is bisected by two large and powerful rivers. Most of the residents live outside of the town centre, and rely on footbridges to cross those rivers as they travel to and from work, markets, schools, and churches. When those rivers jump their banks during the rainy season, those footbridges are the first casualty, along with any man, woman, or child who has the misfortune to be on that footbridge when it washes away.
Nyabahasa. That is the name of a young woman who, on September 17, 2023, was returning to her market stall after seeing her three childen safely across the footbridge. She turned to wave goodbye, lost her footing, and fell into the river. In addition to those children, she leaves a 7-month-old baby. She is not the first to lose her life crossing these rivers, and she will not be the last.
In 2020, and again in 2023, prior to becoming a Society, several current board members spearheaded an effort to raise funds to replace two destroyed footbridges so that life in the village could return to normal as quickly as possible. Ideally, we would replace these wooden bridges with permanent structures, but, until that becomes a possibility, the Society will continue to fund their replacements.
All materials, supplies, and labour are sourced from the local community. Construction, when it becomes necessary again (which it no doubt will), will be supervised and managed by our logistics genius, Joseph Kasibirehe.
