RUTANA May 11th (ABP) – The project to accelerate the achievement of Millennium Development Goal 1c (MDG 1C) has not been able to reach the objective in the south as many activities it had assigned itself were not realized.

This is the result of a regional workshop to prepare its completion report held in Rutana on May 2 to 3, 2019 for beneficiaries, administrative officials and technicians of the Environment, Agriculture and Livestock from Rutana, Makamba and Rumonge, the three southern provinces in which the project worked in addition to the Ruyigi and Cankuzo provinces in the east of the country as well as Bujumbura, Cibitoke and Bubanza in the west.

This project had on its agenda the development of marshes and watersheds, capacity building of producers, support for agricultural development, support for the management and improvement of livestock, support for nutrition and the structuring of producers around promising sectors as well as the setting up of market and processing infrastructures. But according to what was noted by participants in the workshop, the achievements made are few compared to what was not be done or was done wrong.

In addition, the report drafted by PROPA-O and on the basis of which the consultant asked the participants to work does not reflect the reality according to the latter, which would be done deliberately to deceive the opinion, deplored the participants in the workshop .

With regard to what has been done well in Rutana province, for example, they mentioned the construction of a dam, the distribution of 72 cattle and 166 pigs, the multiplication of seeds of trees and the provision of ad hoc equipment, the development of kitchen gardens and the granting of vegetable seeds.

Regarding what has been done but deficient, they identified the main channel and its secondary drains in the Mukazye developed marsh, the school fields which did not show a good example, the protection of the Mukazye marsh by development of its watersheds and the digging of the anti-erosion ditches and their revegetation which were poorly done because indeed, the planting of the fixing herbs was done late, which led to their drying up and the capacity building of the pre-cooperative groupings which is being hastily done at the end of the project.

For what was not done while it was planned, the participants of Rutana talked about the Ndurumu and Nyamvura marshes that were not developed, the Learning and Nutritional Rehabilitation Centers (FARNs) that have not been opened, kits for moms lights that have not been distributed, support for groupings that has not been done, and so on.

In the context of setting up market and processing infrastructures, it was planned to install huskers and to build storage sheds and drying areas integrating agricultural input shops, but this did not take place. Even the veterinary products that were to be given to the beneficiaries of pigs were not distributed as much as the study trips under the intensive rice-growing system (IRS) that were to take place were not carried out.

In addition, the activity reports were not given to the administration as it should, and the project technicians did not inform the provincial office of the Environment, Agriculture and Livestock about their field trips, suggesting that they had something to hide from the BPEAE technicians.

In the three southern provinces, the situation is almost everywhere similar with only a few differences, and that is why the participants asked that for the activities that were planned but could not be realized, the planned means should be transferred to other IFAD-funded projects to be carried out for the benefit of the people.

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