FEATURED; Bugarama rice farmers laud ECDs for boosting job prospects

Bugarama wetland in Rusizi District is one of the biggest components of the district’s environmental and economic infrastructures. The 1500 hectares’ wetland crosses over four sectors of the district, namely Bugarama, Muganza, Gikundamvura and Nyakabuye sectors. Over 6,000 farmers are estimated to have farms in the wetland, as one employs an average of two or three people to work in their field and produce up to 16,500 tons of rice a year or more, produced by the marshland taskforce. The above statistics indicate the area is such a crucial prospect creating employment opportunities for them. Children show their happiness after drinking Shisha Kibondo porridge at Bugarama ECD centre in Rusizi District. However, for parents, it was a challenge to go work in the field, leaving behind babies who have no one to cater for them. Due to that, they hail Early Childhood Development Centres (ECDs) installed in their zones facilitating them to maximise their employment opportunities. Before, they would go to work and leave their children behind, risking their wellbeing and making them prone to several diseases due to low hygiene. Alphonsine Mukandori, a mother of three reiterates how she started becoming more productive at work, since the newly established ECDs came in place as she got more time to work at the farm: “Before the ECDs, I didn’t work enough hours that would allow me to be productive at work. But now, I am a full-time worker and go home with relief, since I know the child is in good hands,” she noted. Mukandori added she was not comfortable with leaving the child alone, and it was very stressful. She also observed: “My son was malnourished because he did not get a balanced diet, but now he has gained weight. He was also exposed to poor manners, but since he joined the ECD, he is polite with skills of counting, singing English songs and recounting stories to me, unlike before.” One of the farmers in the wetland speaks to the media about the importance of ECD centres in Bugarama Sector. In the ECDs, children are provided with porridge and milk to boost their balanced diet. The sentiments of Verena Nyirarubuga also indicate the relief of the burden laid off by ECDs to parents who work in Bugarama marshland. “I was such a vulnerable lady who had no other choice apart from leaving the baby in the neighbourhood, but I am proud that my child is getting the education she deserves at ECDs, as I also make some wages on the side,” she stressed. James Ngirabatware, the Executive Secretary of Muganza sector where this ECD is located rooted for the role of parents to foster ECDs. He is of the view that parents are at the centre of the growth and impact of ECDs, as they support it and respect the advice they get from community leaders. Louis Ndagijimana Nyemanzi, the Vice Mayor in charge of economic development in Rusizi District called on more strategies to tackle stunting and malnutrition, in addition to establishing ECDs. Chantal Uwimana works in her rice plantation in Bugarama wetland. Parents hail Early Childhood Development centres (ECDs) installed in their zones facilitating them to maximise their employment opportunities. Photo: File. “Other than the creation of ECDs, we have to embark on mobilisation, such that all the support provided to children be used in the right ways, and that parents should embrace a balanced diet, when these three aspects are respected, we shall beat stunting,” he vowed. Muganza sector, which borders Bugarama valley, has a total of 57 ECDs with over 1500 children.

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FEATURED; Bugarama rice farmers laud ECDs for boosting job prospects