A TASK force has been sent to assess the flooding situation in Kigoma Region on the ground and deliver appropriate recommendations, the legislature was told yesterday.

Dr Joseph Mhagama, chairman of the Governance, Constitution and Legal Affairs standing committee of the National Assembly affirmed this in the debating chamber, appealing to the government to move quickly to provide emergency support to affected residents and implement long-term solutions to prevent future flooding.

William Lukuvi, the Policy, Parliament and Coordination state minister in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), said that a team of technical experts have been dispatched to Kigoma Ujiji municipality to bolster local response efforts in Katubuka ward.

Severe flooding has displaced more than 400 residents and crippled infrastructure since last year, he said when responding to an emergency appeal from Kigoma Urban MP Kirumbe Ng’enda.

Rising to speak under Standing Order 54, the MP asked that the legislature suspend its regular business to address the crisis, citing escalating damage from ongoing heavy rains that have overwhelmed district and regional authorities.

“The flooding has reached alarming levels,” he said, noting that since last year up to 148 homes, two churches, a fuel station and even the access road to the airport have been submerged. “Residents are in distress and urgently need the government’s intervention,” he declared

Despite earlier appeals the situation has only worsened, he said, pleading that people are crying out for help. “The local administration simply lacks the capacity to manage a disaster of this scale,” he said.

The committee chairman said that the government will not turn a blind eye to the suffering of people in the area. “Action is already underway,” he stated.

Over the weekend residents of the ward with submerged homes due to floodwaters now stretching to three years appealed to President Samia Suluhu Hassan for urgent assistance to help them resume normal life.

In the aftermath of heavy rains over the weekend, floodwaters rose even further, prompting several families to evacuate their homes and seek refuge in safer areas.

One of the affected residents, Bau Khalid Kengwa, said the flooding began in 2023 but to date the government has taken no concrete steps to assist them with relocation, “despite the fact that they purchased plots legally and possess land titles issued by the government.”

Another flood victim, Nelson Kubila, whose home has also been overtaken by water, said a total of 165 houses have been affected since 2023, impacting more than 800 people.

Many of the displaced families have taken shelter at Majengo Primary School and have vowed not to leave until the government provides a permanent relocation site, he stated.

Rashid Chuachua, the district commissioner, visited the school, with Mganwa Nzota, the district administrative secretary reporting that 36 households at the ward were affected in the recent floods.

Of those, six families—comprising 47 people—have sought temporary shelter at the school, while others have moved in with relatives and neighbours, he said.

He said that the government, working with the municipal council and development partners, has provided mattresses and food supplies to affected families while further assessments and interventions are being drawn up.

The DC noted that the government had offered temporary shelter to displaced families, urging them to vacate the school premises soon to enable classes to resume.

Acknowledged the prolonged flooding in the ward which has displaced numerous residents since 2023, he said that the district authorities are conferring with the Tanzania Cities Transformation Initiative (TACTIC).

It has initiated a comprehensive assessment to explore long-term solutions, he said, while the DC affirmed that the district authorities are consulting with the National Environmental Management Council (NEMC) and other agencies to address the crisis. Budgeting and planning processes are underway to determine the next course of action, he added.