During the seven long years of siege, the communities of Hudur district have been afraid to walk the streets at night because of the lack of streetlighting. All the businesses in the town closed at 5.00 pm in the afternoon. There was no social gathering after dark, and the residents locked themselves up in their homes.“After sunset, everyone goes home. People could not walk anywhere in the town, especially women, because of fear. Anything can happen under the cover of darkness, so we stayed home,” says Habiba Ali Borow, a local resident.As part of our project, we rehabilitated 32 solar streetlights in one of Hudur’s main streets. Life for the residents was transformed. They are now doing business and socialising on the streets after sunset.“After years of fear and darkness, the main street has been illuminated. The darkness is over now. When the lights started working, we felt like we had got out of prison. We can walk freely at night to shop or visit friends, relatives and neighbours without any fear,” Habiba told us.Ruqiyo Ibrahim, a mother of seven who sells milk along Hudur’s main street, has seen her business double since the streetlights were installed. Shops, restaurants and other businesses can now stay open at night for as long as there are people who want to shop.“Young people are enjoying tea in outdoor tea-shops because of the solar streetlights,” she says. “Children are also playing football along the side of the main street, and we thank NRC and SHF for that.”
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