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SOUTH SUDAN / UK ENGINEERS
STORY: SOUTH SUDAN / UK ENGINEERS
TRT: 2:44
SOURCE: UNMISS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH
DATELINE: 10 OCTOBER 2017, MALAKAL, SOUTH SUDAN
10 OCTOBER 2017, MALAKAL, SOUTH SUDAN
1. Wide shot, UK engineers at work
2. Close up, bull dozer’s bucket
3. Med shot, bull dozer’s bucket
4. Wide shot, UK engineer at work
5. Close up, UK engineer
6. Close up, bull dozer’s bucket
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Lieutenant Colonel Katie Hislop, United Kingdom Contingent Commander:
“Coming from the UK, there is quite a few female commanding officers so it wasn’t something that I thought about as being different until I arrived. What I’ve also noticed is there are actually very few female peacekeepers over here and I know that it’s really important that we have huge diversity across all of our peacekeepers to fully understand the situation and to be able to add what we can in terms of value.”
8. Wide shot, UK engineers at work
9. Med shot, UK engineers at work
10. Med shot, bull dozer laying cement on the foundation
11. Med shot, UK engineers spreading cement
12. Med shot, UK engineers lifting container’s floor
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Lieutenant Colonel Katie Hislop, United Kingdom Contingent Commander:
“With these skills, what we’re hoping is that this increases the confidence of the local population in the Bentiu state hospital so that people feel more confident in potentially moving from the POC site out to Rubkona or Bentiu and the communities there.”
14. Wide shot, UK engineers working with local people
15. Med shot, UK engineers working with local people
16. Wide shot, children near work site
17. SOUNDBITE (English) Lieutenant Colonel Katie Hislop, United Kingdom Contingent Commander:
“If I could genuinely leave any gift whatsoever, I think I would want to leave self-belief that the situation could get better. But, if you’re asking me about something that I could actually leave, something physical and tangible from the engineers that we have here, then it would be a slight improvement in the infrastructure, making the roads more trafficable, making them safer, and making people more secure, and feel more secure in the POC camps, because it is, quite frankly, a beautiful country, which should have a bright future, and whatever we can do, whether it be small, just a small step, then we would take real privilege from doing that.”
18. Zoom out, UK contingent commander with kids
Working in scorching 38-degree heat and ankle-deep in silty red mud in one of the most volatile regions of South Sudan, 400 troops from the United Kingdom are building desperately needed infrastructure to support the work of the United Nations Mission.
The UK contingent, consisting of engineers, medics, logistics and other support staff, are building roads, accommodation units, helicopter landing systems and other vital infrastructure in Malakal.
They are also designing and building a new hospital in nearby Bentiu so that their 80 medics can provide care for UN personnel across the region.
Leading the contingent is Lieutenant Colonel Katie Hislop, the first female commander to serve with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan.
SOUNDBITE (English) Lieutenant Colonel Katie Hislop, United Kingdom Contingent Commander:
“Coming from the UK, there is quite a few female commanding officers so it wasn’t something that I thought about as being different until I arrived. What I’ve also noticed is there are actually very few female peacekeepers over here and I know that it’s really important that we have huge diversity across all of our peacekeepers to fully understand the situation and to be able to add what we can in terms of value.”
While their primary focus is on enabling the Mission to carry out its mandate, the UK troops are also working on projects that directly benefit local communities, including repairing a culvert in Malakal so people can travel safely in the town and training health workers in Bentiu to improve their skills.
SOUNDBITE (English) Lieutenant Colonel Katie Hislop, United Kingdom Contingent Commander:
“With these skills, what we’re hoping is that this increases the confidence of the local population in the Bentiu state hospital so that people feel more confident in potentially moving from the POC site out to Rubkona or Bentiu and the communities there.”
The experience is a life-changing one for the troops who have travelled so far to work with the people of South Sudan, to protect civilians and build durable peace. They say their reward will be leaving a legacy of having made a real difference to people’s lives.
SOUNDBITE (English) Lieutenant Colonel Katie Hislop, United Kingdom Contingent Commander:
“If I could genuinely leave any gift whatsoever, I think I would want to leave self-belief that the situation could get better. But, if you’re asking me about something that I could actually leave, something physical and tangible from the engineers that we have here, then it would be a slight improvement in the infrastructure, making the roads more trafficable, making them safer, and making people more secure, and feel more secure in the POC camps, because it is, quite frankly, a beautiful country, which should have a bright future, and whatever we can do, whether it be small, just a small step, then we would take real privilege from doing that.”
That privilege, they say, is serving the United Nations, the people of South Sudan, and making their country proud.
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