Ngozi January 7th (ABP) – During the Thursday community development work dedicated to the environment, the administration, the defense and security forces and people met on Mount Mirwa of Camugani hill located below the presidential palace of Ngozi (northern Burundi).
It was a matter of reforesting that hill with a steep slope of more than 100%. More than 5,000 eucalyptus trees have been grown over an area of over 4ha. Emmanuel Ntaconsanze, chief of staff in the office of the governor of Ngozi, said that the aim is to reforest the entire mountain which, visibly, is bare and even dangerous given the presence of arsonists. According to Mr. Ntaconsanze, this is therefore an activity that must end with the first two weeks of January to also protect the swamps downstream.
As for the agronomist of Ngozi commune, Mr. Isaac Gaseko, he specifies that afforestation should be entrusted to environmental protection cooperatives for maintenance, protection and operation. The cooperative will have to clear the afforestation, install firebreaks, cut to size and above all prevent premature cuts.
Regarding the harvest, the association will benefit from 70%, the commune from 20% and the Burundi Environmental Protection Authority (OBPE) from 10%. Such community afforestation regimes are also being tried on the Mukinya mountain range located in the communes of Ngozi and Gahombo in Kayanza province.