All communities in the Djugu territory, particularly those in the Bahema Baguru chiefdom, are delighted to see security gradually return to their region. This positive development allows a notable rapprochement between the groups of Lopa, Jako-Ndahura de Baguru and Sesele in the Walendu Djatsi sector.
For more than two months, residents of Sesele have been regularly going to the Lopa and Jina markets to stock up on food products such as cassava and vegetables. For their part, the populations of the Lopa and Jako-Ndahura groups go daily to Sesele to work in the Morgue quarry, a gold mine. Women, for their part, frequent the Nyustu-Bidona markets in Matete, which are also located in the same customary entity.
This return to peaceful cohabitation between communities is the result of an awareness campaign led by the NGO Action pour la Paix et la Concorde since last July. This awareness allowed members of different communities to understand the importance of coming together and living together in harmony.
Gédéon Dino, coordinator of this structure, welcomes this positive development: “We clearly see peaceful cohabitation. Young people hang out together and this marks the return of peace. The NGO A.P.C. really raised awareness among communities, who then understood the importance of coming together.”
This rapprochement is not unique to the Bahema Baguru chiefdom. It also occurs in other entities, such as the chiefdom of Bahema North and Walendu Tatsi and Pitsi, where populations frequent the markets of Saliboko and Dzud’a together. All these communities hope that this pacification will extend to the entire area, which will allow displaced people, who are estimated at more than one million seven hundred thousand, to return to their villages.
This development reflects a glimmer of hope in the Djugu region, where security and peaceful coexistence are essential to enable development and stability. Thanks to the efforts of local actors and humanitarian organizations, populations are regaining confidence and aspire to a better future.