The city of Bukavu, the capital of the province of South Kivu, is facing a worrying increase in fires. This situation is worrying the local population as well as civil society actors. Questioned by the press on Saturday, September 14 in Kinshasa, Luganywa Bashizi Didier Kabi, spokesperson for the provincial government of South Kivu, revealed that an investigation has been launched to determine the causes of these fires. He indicated that several of these fires were of criminal origin, while others were the result of poor urbanization in Bukavu.

"At the end of this investigation, we found that several fires were criminal. Unsupervised children, nicknamed 'Mayibubu', are paid by economic operators to collect scrap metal, sheet metal and other objects containing iron. These scrap metals are then sold to networks operating between Uganda and Rwanda. This has considerably contributed to the resurgence of fires," explained the spokesperson for the provincial government, who is staying in Kinshasa.

In addition to this illegal collection, the poor urbanization of Bukavu was singled out. "The governor inherited a fragmented city, with plots of land measuring 5 meters by 5 or 5 meters by 10 in the city center, where the houses are mostly made of wood. These conditions favor the rapid spread of fires, especially when fuel sellers store their flammable products at home," he added.

To address this situation, the provincial government has taken measures, including banning the sale of machine guns in Bukavu. "Since this ban, we have seen a significant decrease in cases of fire. This problem is not linked to the poor governance of the new governor, but to poor urban planning inherited from the past," said Luganywa Bashizi Didier Kabi.

Since the start of the dry season, civil society has recorded more than 80 fires in the province of South Kivu between June 10 and September 13, 2024. It calls for the activation of mechanisms to combat this scourge throughout the province.