Kayonza- Send a Cow Rwanda gave Friesian cows to 32 families of Ruramira Sector in Kayonza District yesterday.

The farmers also got livestock drugs and salt worth over one million Rwanda Francs.

Froduald Munyanyiko, Send a Cow Country Director, says the cows were offsprings from cows earlier given to Rukara farmers.

"This is a traditional exercise we call pass-over...where the first beneficiaries pass on heifers from the donated livestock to their neighbours,” he said.

He said that for sustainability, farmers own the exercise and are only facilitated when need arises.

"We shall continue giving people more cows, to supplement the cattle stocking programme. In addition, we train and provide medicine and other essentials to farmers.”

Anita Mutesi, the Vice Mayor in charge of social affairs, said the national cattle stocking programme changed people’s livelihoods.

She urged farmers and veterinary officers, to feed and observe the cows’ health, so as to benefit from their products.

"With cows, we don’t expect Kwashiorkor in communities...the manure from the cow dung, will definitely increase crop production. This breed of cows however, needs constant supervision because it is more vulnerable to disease,” she told the ecstatic farmers.

Margaret Mujawimana, one of the first beneficiaries says her life changed since she got a cow.

Her children, she said, get enough milk to drink and she sells the surplus to get money to pay their school fees.

"I was relieved of many family demands...I am a single parent with 7 dependants. I had failed to look after them until I got a Friesian cow, the 18 litres a day, changed my living standards,” she boasted.

The exercise was part of ‘One Cow per Household’ project commonly known as Girinka.

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