RUMONGE April 28th (ABP) – Vyanda Nature Reserve covers an area of 4670 hectares. It is located in two provinces that are Bururi and Rumonge in the south of the country. That protected reserve is threatened by human exploitation. According to the head of this reserve Emery Niyogushima, around 300 households have settled in the reserve with all the consequences in terms of the exploitation of resources contained in that reserve.
The people have exploited fields there, supplies itself with firewood and carries out other activities which deteriorate this protected reserve of Vyanda (cutting of wood). He makes it known that some live there by right.
In this regard, he said that after the crisis of 1972, the government granted this right to repatriates from that period. Yet there are others who have settled there and continue to settle there illegally, he said.
Mr. Niyogushima says that it is thus impossible for the forest guards to control the flow of this population and to know who has permission or not to settle there.
Next to those households, inside the reserve, there is the Kigutu hospital and 3 schools. Mr. Niyogushima considers that this reserve is very threatened. For him, the area of the reserve (4670 hectares) has decreased significantly if one refers to the exploitation of man.
It appeals to the government to restore its splendor to this reserve by relocating all the people who live there (the 300 households, the hospital and the 3 schools) while ensuring strict respect for its limits. If this proves impossible, he calls on the authorized authorities to stop the process of settling populations in that reserve to safeguard what remains of the reserve.
To ensure his protection, Mr. Niyogushima called on officials to increase the number of rangers. A total of 6 forest rangers take care of the 4670 hectares, a territory they cannot cover. He asks that the eco-guards be equipped with appropriate protective clothing and tools, without forgetting to provide these forest guards with appropriate means of movement inside and outside the reserve, as long as the relief of that Vyanda Protected Nature Reserve is rugged.
For that reserve to generate revenue from tourist visits, Mr. Niyogushima believes that the government must make a considerable effort to develop this reserve, drawing inspiration from the development of reserves in the sub-region: tracing trails, construction of hotels and other reception facilities inside the reserve, among others.
The fauna of this reserve is varied. There are among other species “ingongo”, “imiyombo” and mushrooms. An equally varied fauna made up of baboons, chimpanzees and antelopes, among others, according to Mr. Niyogushima.