Fifteen children at home

The arrival of many displaced people in Yambio made Julie live in a real nursery.

Nine of the fifteen children living at Julie’s house play with a teddy bear. Photo by Albert González Farran – UNICEF

Yambio, a town of 40,000 residents at the western border of South Sudan with DRC, is experiencing an unprecedented displacement. In the past months, indiscriminate attacks by armed groups in the rural area have forced hundreds of families flee to the city. They found accommodation in houses of relatives, friends, colleagues or even charitable souls who open their doors.

Julie Adriano, a single mother of two children, lives in a nearly unbearable situation. Julie received some relatives who fled from Gitikiri village, but she also fostered two other children who lost their parents during the escape. Five adults take care of 15 children who flutter around the house. Her house has became a real nursery.

The increase of water consumption, the shortage of food and the lack of soap and clothes are some of the main challenges that households are currently facing in Yambio.