The Fund for the support of Genocide Survivors (FARG) has launched a drive to raise Rwf27.7 billion for construction of new houses and rehabilitation of others for vulnerable Genocide survivors ahead of the 22nd commemoration set for April.

The 1994 Genocide against Tutsi that killed over a million people left many widows, helpless old women and men, orphans and the disabled, most of whom are vulnerable, thus requiring shelter, healthcare, education and other basic needs.

FARG officials said considering the budget allocated to it every financial year, it could not solve the urgent need to support the most vulnerable survivors.

Jean Francois Regis Gihana, the shelter officer at FARG, told The New Times that of the budget allocated to the fund, 70 per cent goes to education and the rest to direct support.

FARG received Rwf28 billion this financial year, but Gihana said the budget for shelter was too little to support survivors in urgent need of new houses and those requiring rehabilitation.

"This fiscal year, shelter department got Rwf3.1 billion that can only be spent on an estimated 407 units if we were to put each house at Rwf7 million, yet we have more urgent need to construct and rehabilitate more than that,” he said.

About 12,168 housing units for survivors need renovation.

"Of these, we realised that 3,036 housing units need full renovation, while others can have partial repair. But we also found that 2,924 housing units need to be razed down and new ones constructed,” he said.

According to Gihana, they started renovation in 2013 in conjunction with Rwanda Defence Forces’ reserve force.

They have so far rehabilitated 1,718 housing units but, by the end of 2014, they realised that 1,687 survivors had no shelter at all.

He said the huge demand could take long to meet unless more funds were raised.

Reducing the cost on houses

Gihana said FARG has since decided to start building ‘twin houses’ where two, three or four units can be combined so that, for example, the cost of bricks, poles and cement reduce.

"To reduce the cost further, were also reduced the number of rooms we used to build for those without large families,” he said.

Previously, the houses cost Rwf17 million each to construct, but twin houses cost Rwf13 million each.

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How campaign will run

According to Angelique Ingabire, the resource mobilisation officer in charge of the campaign, FARG will carry out the drive in conjunction with Local Government ministry.

"The fundraising and mobilisation strategy replicates others that have solved some critical issues before, such as ones used in building Nine- and 12-Year Basic Education classrooms, One Dollar Campaign Complex, building memorial sites, support for people evicted from Tanzania, Agaciro Development Fund, Bye-Bye Nyakatsi and Umuganda,” Ingabire said.

The contributions will come from government, NGOS, churches, FARG partners, donors, as well as the private sector and individuals, she added.

Ingabire said contributions can be both material and cash.

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