Nduta (Tanzania): a young refugee killed in a road accident

A 13-year-old refugee died in a road accident this Tuesday morning at the Burundian refugee camp of Nduta. The vehicle that hit him has not been identified. The police say they have started investigations. INFO SOS Médias Burundi

The victim lived in zone 9 but the road accident occurred in zone 15 on a road that crosses the camp towards the urban center of the Kibondo district.

According to witnesses, “the young boy was playing on this road and did not have time to flee while the vehicle was driving at breakneck speed”. “He was with his friends who were going to the nature reserve to look for firewood”, they add.

They regret that road users do not respect the 30 km/h sign post even though they are visible. Residents of Nduta assure that these road signs were recently installed. His parents and neighbors ask the traffic police to focus on the safety of the refugees in this camp by requiring road users to respect the maximum speed.

The vehicle that hit the young man did not stop and has not been identified either. The victim’s parents demand investigations so the driver is punished and the insurer pays compensation. The police have agreed to look into it.

This is not the first time that accidents of this kind have occurred on the same road.

“Every quarter, we count at least five deaths on this main road,” recalls a refugee who suggests the construction of many speed bumps, the presence of the traffic police and the limit of at least 10 or 20 km/h, speaking of an area heavily populated by many children.

Nduta camp is home to more than 58,000 Burundian refugees.