Red Cross Volunteers Active in Mapping Vingunguti

Date: February 12, 2016

[:en]Vingunguti is an administrative ward in Ilala district in western Dar Es Salaam and according to the 2012 census has a population of 106,946. Vingunguti ward is a flood prone area of Dar es Salaam and many settlements within it are informal. The Msimbazi River flows around the West and North boundary of the ward, and during rainy season is a major cause of flooding.

Launching mapping in Vingunguti

Ramani Huria launched mapping in Vingunguti with a community forum taking place on 11th September 2015. Red Cross volunteers were excited to be present at the event, with the Ward Community Executive Officer Mr Msimi, and community members from eight sub-wards, including Mtambani, Kombo, Mtakuja, and Miembeni. Also in attendance were representatives from the World Bank, Humanitarian OpenStreetMap, and university students from Ardhi University and the University of Dar es Salaam.

Vingunguti ward before mapping SOURCE: OpenStreetMap
Vingunguti ward before mapping SOURCE: OpenStreetMap

Vingunguti ward includes many flood prone areas and Red Cross volunteers shared their experiences of flooding in the ward during 2011 and 2015. One story shared by Mzeee Hamis was that in 2015, floods led to the death of five people and buildings within the ward were so heavily flooded they have been abandoned. He noted that due to financial resources current initiatives against flooding are severely limited. Mr Said Mwikala also shared his experiences, noting that on the 4th of April Vingunguti hospital was completely flooded, with drains overflowing and offices and wards of the hospital being severely affected. As a result, in one case, a pregnant woman had to deliver outside the labour room as it inaccessible and full of water. Ambulances were unable to bring the sick to the hospital, and the facilities were not functional for more than twelve hours. He noted that the flooding in April of this year was disastrous, with high costs to property and loss of life.

Mapping Vingunguti

Assisting in the mapping of Vingunguti by Ramani Huria, the Red Cross volunteer group divided into two groups, each with ten volunteers, and each group worked with other community members and students involved in the mapping of the ward. The first group were active from 14th September to 18th September, and in collaboration with experienced student mappers, began data collection with GPS units. The second group were active from 21st September to 25th September.

While many residents were enthusiastic and supportive of the mapping project, the Red Cross volunteer teams did encounter some challenges. Power shortages made it difficult to digitalise the collected information in a timely manner and the changes in availability of the room supplied by the ward office meant that activities had to occasionally relocate to the nearby Kombo Primary School. Some community members were fearful that because their residencies were informal, mapping could lead to destruction. Because of this some refused to allow their houses to be mapped and others discouraged the mappers from collecting information. However, those conducting the mapping reassured residents that this was not the intention of the project, or the government officials Ramani Huria is working with.

While some challenges were faced in mapping, the students, community members, and Red Cross volunteers all worked hard to complete mapping of the ward on time. Over two weeks the Ramani Huria team, including Red Cross volunteers, mapped the entire ward, including sub-wards of: Kombo; Mji Mpya; Faru, Mtambani; Mtakuja; Butiama; Miembeni; and Majengo. Key features such as roads, buildings, drainage channels, and flood prone areas, were all included in the mapping.

Completing mapping in Vingunguti

[osm_map_v3 map_center=”-6.846,39.227″ zoom=”16″ width=”100%” height=”450″ map_border=”thin solid grey”]
Vingunguti ward after mapping

Mapping was completed in the ward and closed with a community forum on the 9th of October. Maps were presented at the ward, a general map and drainage specific map, and those participating in the mapping received certificates of achievement.

Maps presented in Vingunguti ward PHOTO CREDIT: Ramani Huria
Maps presented in Vingunguti ward PHOTO CREDIT: Ramani Huria

The maps were presented to the Ward Executive Officer, Mr Msimi, to provide Vingunguti ward with the tools to enable improved disaster planning and response to flooding.

Read more about Vingunguti ward on the Ramani Huria website and all data collected on the ward is available from Ramani Huria and on OpenStreetMap.[:sw]Vingunguti ni Kata iliyopo wilaya ya Ilala magharibi mwa Dar Es Salaam na kulingana Sensa ya mwaka  2012 ina idadi ya watu 106,946.  Kata ya Vingunguti hukabiliwa na mafuriko na makazi yake mengi sio rasimi. Mto msimbazi hutiririsha maji kutokea magharibi na kasikazini mwa mpaka wa kata ya Vingunguti, hivyo wakati wa msimu wa mvua ni sababu inayopelekea mafuriko.

Uzinduzi wa Uandaaji Ramani Vingunguti

Ramani Huria ilizindua utengenezaji ramani Vingunguti kupitia vikao vya wanajamii mnamo tarehe 11/09/2015. Kikundi cha kujitolea cha Msalaba mwekundu kilivutiwa na ushiriki wake, akiwemo afisa mtendaji wa jamii Mr Msimi na vikundi vya wanajamii  kutoka mitaa minane ikiwemo Mtambani, Kombo, Mtakuja, and Miembeni. Pia walihudhuria wawakilishi kutoka Benki ya Dunia, Humanitarian OpenStreetMap na wanafunzi wa vyuo kutoka Ardhi and Dar Es Salaam.

Vingunguti ward before mapping SOURCE: OpenStreetMap
Kata ya Vingunguti kabla ya uandaaji  wa Ramani mpya SOURCE:OpenStreetMap

Kata ya Vingunguti ikihusisha maeneo yake mengi hatarishi kwa mafuriko na Kikundi cha kujitolea cha Msalaba Mwekundu walishiriki kupeana uzoefu wa mafuriko katika kata yaliyotokea kipindi cha 2011 na 2015. Kulingana na simulizi ya mzee Hamis alisema mwaka 2015 mafuriko yalisababisha vifo vya watu watano na nyumba zilijaa maji na kutelekezwa. Alibainisha kutokana na mpango rasilimali fedha uliokuwepo wa kubambana na mafuriko kuwa mdogo. Pia bwana Said Mwikala alielezea uzoefu wake kwa kubainisha kuwa mnamo tarehe 4 mwezi wa 4 hospitali ya Vingunguti yote ilikubwa na mafuriko, mitaro kujaa maji, ofisi na wodi za hospitali zilihathirika sana. Hivyo kupelekea mama mjamzito kujifungulia nje ya chumba cha kujifungulia sababu kilikuwa hakifikiki na kilikuwa kimejaa maji. Gari la wagonjwa lilishindwa kuleta wagonjwa hospitalini na vifaa havikuweza kufanya kazi kwa muda wa zaidi ya masaa 12. Alibainisha kwamba mafuriko ya mwezi wa nne mwaka huu yalikuwa ya maafa, kughrimu mali na watu kufariki.

Uandaaji wa Ramani Vingunguti

Katika kusaidia kutengeneza ramani ya vingunguti,watu waliojitolea kutoka kikosi cha msalaba mwekundu walijigawanya katika makundi mawili kila kundi likiwa na washiriki kumi,na kila kundi lilifanya kazi na wanajamii wengine na wanafunzi walioshiriki katika kutengeneza ramani ya kata tajwa.Kundi la kwanza lilifanya kazi kazi kuanzia  septemba 14 hadi septemba 18 kwa kushirikiana na wanafunzi wenye uzoefu walikusnya taarifa kutumia kifaa cha GPS.Kundi la pili lilifanya kazi kuanzia septemba 21 hadi 25.

Wakati wakazi wakitoa ushrikiano mkubwaka  katika,waliojitoleakutoka kikosi cha msalaba mwekundu walikumbana na baadhi ya changamoto,Tatizo la umeme lilileta ugumu katika kuingiza taarifa zilizokusanywa kwa mda uliopangwa na hivyo kusababisha kuhama kutoka katika chumba kilichotolewa na ofisi ya kata kwenda katika shule jirani ya Kombo.Baadhi ya wanajamii waliingiwa na hofu kutokana na makazi yao kuwa holela na kudhani ramani zingetumika kubomoa makazi yao,kutokana na hili wengine walikataa nyumba zao zisiwekwe kwenye ramani na kukatisha tamaa wataalam waliokuwa wakikusanya taarifa.Hata hivyo waliokuwa wanakusanya taarifa waliwahakikishia wana jamii kuwa mradi haukuwa na lengo la kubomoa nyumba zao wala maofisa wa serikali waliokuwa wakifanya kazi na ramani huria hawakuwa na lengo hilo.

Changamoto mbalimbali zilitokea katika zoezi lakini wanafunzi, wanajamii na waliojitolea kutoka kikosi cha msalaba mwekundu walifanya kazi kwa juhudi kuhakikisha zoezi la utengenezaj ramani linakamilika kwa muda,Ndani ya wiki mbili timu ya ramani huria ilikamilisha zoezi la kutengeneza ramani ya kata ya vingunguti  ikiwemo mitaa yake  ya Kombo, Mji Mpya,Faru,Mtambani,Mtakuja,Butiama,Miembeni,and Majengo.Taarifa muhimu kama vile barabara, majengo ,mitaro/mifereji na maeneo yanayokumbwa na mafuriko, vyote vilionyeshwa katika ramani.

Hitimisho lautengenezaji wa ramani Vingunguti

[osm_map_v3 map_center=”-6.846,39.227″ zoom=”16″ width=”100%” height=”450″ map_border=”thin solid grey”]
Kata ya vingunguti baada ya ramani kutengenezwa.

Zoezi lakutengeneza ramani lilihitimishwa katika kata na kikao cha kufunga kilifanyika oktoba 9 2015.Ramani ziliwasilishwa katika kata,Ramani ya ujumla na Ramani iliyoonyesha  mitaro na wote walioshiriki walizawadiwa vyeti vya ushiriki.

Maps presented in Vingunguti ward PHOTO CREDIT: Ramani Huria
Ramani zikiwasilishwa vingunguti.PICHA IMEPIGWA: Ramani Huria

Ramani ziliwasilishwa kwa mtendaji wa kata Bwana Msimi ikionyesha kata ya vingunguti mbinu zinazoweza kusaidia kuboresha ukabilianaji a majanga na kukabiliana na mafuriko

Soma zaidi kuhusu vingunguti kwenye tovoti ya Ramani Huria na data zote zilizokusanywa katika kata zipo kwenye Ramani Huria na OpenStreetMap

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