The Government of Japan has extended a $1.2 million (about Rwf815 million) grant toward the Millennium Villages Project (MVP) in Mayange, Bugesera District.

The grant, announced last week, will be run through the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). 

A statement from the Japanese embassy says the grant will be used to improve water and sanitation, healthcare and nutrition services in Mayange Sector. 

The MVP, a project of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, the UN Development Programme, among other partners, is an approach to addressing the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that address problems of poverty, health, gender equality, and disease.  

"This support is in line with Japan’s assistance towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals in Rwanda,” the statement reads in part. 

More than 25,000 residents in the Millennium Villages in Mayange are expected to benefit from this grant. 

Access to clean water

The MVP was launched in 2005 and its first phase ended in 2010. The second phase (2011-2015) is being carried out in 10 African countries, including Rwanda. 

"The project is implemented in keeping with the Japanese commitments made at the Fifth Tokyo International Conference for African Development (TICAD V) held in Yokohama, Japan last June,” adds the statement. 

Early this month, the Energy Water and Sanitation Authority (EWSA) told The New Times that it has placed Eastern Province on top of the list of areas to benefit from clean water projects. 

The Fourth Population and Housing Census report, released last month, indicates that access to clean water increased from 51 per cent in 2008 to 73 per cent in 2012, and remains lowest in the region. 

James Sano, the deputy director-general of EWSA, said they plan to fast-track the rollout of water pipelines, reservoirs, and stand pipes in Gatsibo, Kayonza, Nyagatare, and Bugesera districts.