When William Bahati was chosen among beneficiaries of the government-backed One-Cow-Per-Poor-Family scheme, or Girinka as it is commonly known, about three years ago, he thought it was the end of hardship.

Indeed, he was confident that the cow would transform his life and usher him and his family into a new era of prosperity.

Under the programme, vulnerable families across the country including disadvantaged Genocide survivors, widows, orphans and people with disabilities or those living with HIV/Aids, are offered dairy cows to help them improve their living conditions.

The programme, which was introduced in 2006, is already credited with transforming the lives of beneficiaries as well as boosting the country’s milk output.

"When I received the cow, I knew my life was going to change,” Bahati says, adding that all was going well until his cow disappeared.

Some few months ago, Bahati, a resident of the rural Rwaniro Sector in Huye District, went to bed as usual but when he woke up in the morning and went to check on his animal, he found the kraal empty.

"The cow was not there. We tried to search for it in vain,” he said.

Today, four months since the cow ‘went missing’, Bahati is still ‘mourning’.

"The theft was a big blow to me and my family,” he says.

But he is not the only one who has lost livestock to thieves.

Though there are no official figures on how many heads of cattle have been stolen, authorities in the Southern Province say cattle theft is a serious concern that needs to be tackled.

Residents named dozens of their friends or neighbours who have fallen prey to cattle theft.

Bahati, for instance, says he knows over ten people whose cows were stolen over the past four months.

"I have resorted to keeping my cow inside the house to shield it from thieves,” says a resident of Kansi Sector in Gisagara ,only identified as Mukakibibi.

"Thieves are on rampage and I do not want to have my cow stolen. I have decided to keep it in its kraal during day and move it in the house at night,” she says.

But authorities say residents should not worry as efforts are ongoing to eliminate the vice.

Chief Superintendent Simon Pierre Mukama, the Southern Region Police Commander (RPC), told a recent provincial news briefing that efforts are underway to get rid of cattle rustling in the area.

They include reinforcing community night patrols and offering special protection to families that own cows.

"We do not only want to reduce the number of cows being stolen, we want to ensure that no single cow is stolen again,” Mukama said.

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