Residents living around the Volcanoes National Park (VNP) are crying foul over the sorry state of the road linking the park to Kinigi centre.According to the farmers in the area, known for producing Irish potatoes on a large scale, the state of the 12-kilometre road has left them selling their produce at giveaway prices as buyers cite inaccessibility as the reason for the low prices.In Kinigi, for example, a kilogramme of potatoes is sold at Rwf90, while in Bisate, a kilogramme goes for as little as Rwf60.The residents urged the government to rehabilitate the road using proceeds from tourism activities in the area, as part of the revenue sharing scheme between government and communities living around parks.Residents told The New Times, they need a better road to save the situation.Jean de Dieu Irakoze, a resident in Bisate region, Musanze District, said the poor state of the road has placed them in the jaws of unscrupulous middlemen.“How can our road be this bad yet we live close to the park that is visited by hundreds of tourists every week? They are always lecturing us about commercial farming, but how can we ensure that if traders give the excuse of a bad road to dictate prices of our produce?” a visibly annoyed Irakoze asked.Revenue sharingAccording to Rwanda Development Board, through the revenue-sharing scheme, communities are entitled to 5% of the profits made from tourism activities in their respective areas.The VNP, which is home to the mountain gorillas, generates at least 40 per cent of the proceeds the country makes from tourism.To access their share from the tourism proceeds, residents of Bisate say they are obliged to belong to a cooperative which they can only join after contributing money.Jean Bosco Kambanda, a farmer in Kinigi sector, said their effort in conserving and protecting the park as well as having to put up with stray animals which periodically destroy their plantations has not been recognised enough.Tourism proceedsKambanda decried the practice of disbursing tourism proceeds to residents in cash instead of using the money to develop infrastructure in the area.“It is better to use the money to develop infrastructure. This road should, for example, be constructed from these proceeds. We can make a better leaving if we get our produce to the market with ease,” said Kambanda.HopeThelesphore Ngoga, the Conservation Division Manager at the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), said they are concerned about the poor state of the road and have reported the matter to the Rwanda Transport Development Agency (RTDA). “We have taken note of their complaints and soon the road will be fixed,” he said.Theophile Dusabe, the head of Maintenance Division at RTDA, told The New Times that they expect to have the finances released in the next Financial Year. Dusabe assured residents of Musanze that in the 2014-2015 fiscal year, the road problem will be no more.He said the estimated worth of the construction works is about over Rwf4 billion.
