Editor,

RE: I conducted a public opinion survey among peasants about the current agricultural policy, but the majority of respondents replied that this policy was unfair to them because they were never consulted by the agricultural authorities on matters relating to agricultural production affecting them in the first place.

Concerning the CIP (Crop Intensification Programme) and land use consolidation, they stressed the fact that it is prejudicial to smallholder farmers who practice subsistence agriculture. Indeed, as everyone knows, the majority of peasant farmers in Rwanda practice subsistence agriculture and not commercial agriculture, so it is unfair to ask them to devote themselves to a single crop.

They did not hesitate to suggest that the recent food shortages reported in several parts of the country were the result of this policy. They said that the Government should consider reviewing the present policy so as to let them grow other crops of their interest and of their choice on their land, especially food crops that are reputed to effectively boost food security.

Alfred