BUJUMBURA August 17th (ABP) – The Minister of the Environment, Agriculture and Livestock, Mr. Déo Guide Rurema, answered, on Monday August 16, 2021, the oral questions of MPs during a piloted plenary session by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Daniel Gélase Ndabirabe.
It was to analyze and adopt the bill on the ratification by the Republic of Burundi of the grant agreement N ° TF0B5320 of 6 million US dollars for the additional financing of the project of restoration and resilience of the landscape in Burundi between the Republic of Burundi and the International Development Association (IDA) signed in Bujumbura on May 24, 2021.
Mr. Rurema clarified that the Burundi Landscape Restoration and Resilience Project (PRRPB) was approved in 2018 to address the root causes of upstream landscape degradation, by investing in the development of resilient landscapes by restoration efforts and sustainable management practices of landscapes.
He said that the project intervention area is made up on the one hand of Buhinyuza and Isare communes respectively of Muyinga and Bujumbura provinces, and on the other hand of three protected areas in that case the Ruvubu National Park, part of the Kibira National Park and the Bururi Forest Nature Reserve.
Minister Rurema also signified that additional funding with funds from the Global Environment Fund (GEF) under the Food Systems, Land Use and Restoration Impact Program in the amount of 6 million USD will help finance the costs associated with scaling up and extending the activities of the initial project in an additional province of Kayanza, Matongo commune with degraded landscapes.
With the funding, said the Minister in charge of the environment, it is proposed a restructuring of the parent project to extend the closing date by one year, that is to say from March 14, 2023 to March 14, 2024 for align with the GEF schedule given the close links between the initial project and the additional funding.
Mr. Rurema also indicated that the additional funding will help communities restore degraded landscapes and intensify sustainable landscape management practices in the hills targeted for more sustainable and resilient food production and strengthening value chains. commodities. It will also promote activities that reduce conversion and degradation of forests due to encroachment within Kibira National Park in areas adjacent to these landscapes.
Regarding the direct beneficiaries of the project, he cited 6,900 households of small producers, therefore 48,500 inhabitants including 54% of women from 9 villages of Matongo commune who will benefit from improved soil productivity and control measures against erosion. 100 organizational staff will also benefit from capacity building.
The deputies wanted to know the achievements, the successes and the challenges in the three years that the project of restoration and resilience of the landscape in Burundi has just passed.
On that, the minister announced that 550 state lands have been identified and demarcated, ie 367 lands in Buhinyuza communes and 183 lands in Isare. Forestry and agro-forestry seedlings were produced in 12 nurseries and planted on state lands and fruit seedlings were distributed around the three protected areas.
According to Rurema, the implementation of the project made it possible to create jobs through the labor-based approach which resulted in an increase in the income of the beneficiary people. It has also contributed to the protection of the environment in its area of intervention.
According to Mr. Rurema, the late recruitment of project staff following World Bank procedures caused significant impacts on the start-up of project activities.
After receiving clarification on certain concerns, the National Assembly recommended that the government initial page by page all the documents of agreement of the various projects and its annexes signed between the government and its partners to avoid possible modifications; to take the leader in the assembly, implementation and monitoring-evaluation of projects and not to accompany technical and financial partners and to favor national expertise in the provision of services.
The Speaker of National Assembly indicated that a small commission for the follow-up of the implementation of the recommendations made will be created for this purpose. Note that the bill was adopted unanimously.