For two years, Edward Kafeero, commonly known as Owekikapu, a resident of Mweena Landing Site in Kalangala District, has relied on offloading boats to fend for his family of three and educate his relatives. But the job, which keeps him waist-deep in lake water for hours, has exposed him to recurring health problems.
‘We work eight hours a day in the lake water. Sometimes it reaches our chest as we struggle to earn something to eat. But bilharzia is one of the battles we deal with all the time,’ Kafeero said during an interview on Monday.
He recalled the first time he was diagnosed with the disease.
‘It was five months after I started offloading boats. My skin began itching, I thought it was from the algae broom. Later, I developed diarrhoea and fell very sick. I didn’t know where to get treatment and feared going to the health centre. Luckily, one day, a doctor passing by the landing site had drugs. My friends referred him to my home, that is how I was saved,’ he said.
Bilharzia is a waterborne disease caused by flatworms that thrives in contaminated water. A 2020 report from Kalangala District indicates that approximately 80 percent of the islanders had tested positive for the disease, largely due to improper human waste disposal. Kafeero said many of his fellow casual workers who offload boats have also been infected, in addition to suffering frequent injuries.
‘We are sometimes cut by broken glasses or oil palm thorns left in the lake as we rush to offload boats. Oil palm bunches that fall into the water pierce our legs, causing wounds that easily get infected,’ he said.
He added: ‘Because our legs are always in the water, they develop cracks that later start rotting. Sometimes, the nails and the skin turn green, and our feet begin to decay.’ Another casual worker, Mr Disan Katongole, commonly known as Singu, said despite the risks associated with offloading boats, the job is their only means of survival. ‘It is one of the few jobs anyone can do to earn something and maybe save to start a small business. Jobs are scarce and fishing is no longer reliable,’ he said.
Mr Katongole explained that most casual workers enter the water barefoot because they cannot afford proper protective gear. ‘We carry heavy loads, so wearing boots adds more weight. We end up barefoot because light shoes or bare feet help us move faster, but it exposes us to more danger,’ he said. The situation worsens when algae spreads green across the lake. ‘When that green algae appears, we spend the whole day and night scratching ourselves,’ Mr Katongole said.
He added that the physical strain is immense.
‘A man weighing 70 kilogrammes can be told to lift a sack of 100 kilogrammes, or an Irish potato sack weighing 350 kilogrammes, for only Shs2,000. Sometimes, we move a 200-kilogramme silverfish sack worth over Shs1 million for just Shs3,000. We end up with back and chest pains that we cannot afford to treat,’ Mr Katongole said. Casual workers said Bilharzia medicine is only brought to the landing site once a year, yet they risk infection daily. They also say proper protective wear costs more than Shs200,000, a price far beyond their means.
‘We pray that the government helps to make protective gear cheaper and accessible so that we can safeguard our lives,’ they said. Both men appealed to the government and health authorities to make Bilharzia treatment more regular and to support alternative livelihoods. ‘We request the government to set up training programmes in carpentry, construction, or electrical work so we can find safer jobs,’ one of the labourers said.
Treatment
Mr Godfrey Adubi, the Kalangala Deputy District Health Officer, said despite bilharzia being a major problem for the off loaders, it has a cure. ‘Treatment of Bilharzia is available at our health centres and we have normally received off loaders, treated, healed and cautioned on safety while executing their job,” he said.
Mr Adubi said they also carry out sensitisation on landing sites and encourage not only off loaders but all people to go to health facilities for medical check-ups.
A total of 30 casual boat off loaders are currently operating at Mweena Landing Site in Kalangala Town Council, 15 are at Kitobo Landing Site in Kyamuswa County and 100 are at Kasenyi Landing Site in Entebbe Municipality.
Daily hustle.
‘A man weighing 70 kilogrammes can be told to lift a sack of 100 kilogrammes, or an Irish potato sack weighing 350 kilogrammes, for only Shs2,000. Sometimes, we move a 200-kilogramme silverfish sack worth over Shs1 million for just Shs3,000. We end up with back and chest pains that we cannot afford to treat,’ Mr Disan Katongole, casual worker.