Investigate the cattle stocking project

The success of the cattle stocking program locally known as ‘Girinka’, may be undermined by latest press reports; some leaders are allocating themselves cattle and diverting funds meant for the cattle stocking program. Supply of poor quality cows by people given the tenders and selling off cows by the beneficiaries was reported a couple of weeks ago. I was listening to Radio Rwanda morning news, and within a few minutes many listeners sent in text messages wondering why a local leader retains what is meant for residents. In Gicumbi District, livestock farmers rejected about 102 cows which had been supplied to them on credit, because the animals were allegedly of poor quality. Only 30 of the 98 cows which were examined by veterinary personnel qualified as Friesian cross breeds capable of yielding high milk production. These were not the only irregularities. In Ngoma District, the sector leaders diverted funds meant for the cattle project, while other reports indicated that some beneficiaries sold off the cows. Surely, when the government launched the One Cow per Family project in districts, it did not anticipate that it would be abused by the leaders and the very beneficiaries of the project. Led by the Rwanda Animal Resource Development Agency, several NGOs have distributed hundreds of Frisian cows in villages since 2007. And everybody has confidence about how cows can help in the eradication of poverty. Cows are trusted due to their enormous contributions: apart from providing milk and meat, cow dung provides manure which can be applied in gardens to improve food production as well as act as source of fuel. I know many people who managed to pay for their education as a result of revenue from cattle business. True, there has been some remarkable success, considering that the importation of milk and its products has drastically reduced. Modern breeds are said to stand at 14,842 and milk production has increased by 250,000 tonnes. However, the recent reports expose a number of flaws in the program. The cattle scheme should be investigated. The distribution scheme and the cattle vaccination program should be looked at in detail. You never know the recent outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the eastern part of the country may be linked to lack of vaccination. The kind of flaws which have been reported in Gicumbi, and Ngoma, are capable of being discovered else where. Leaders taking advantage of their positions to draft their names among the beneficiaries or misappropriating the funds meant for the project is very unethical. One may ask “what kind of good governance are such leaders displaying to Rwandans”? Well, one will argue that leaders are also supposed to get cows, provided they fall in the same bracket with other prospective beneficiaries. But, ethically you don’t use your office to allocate yourself something meant for residents. It is a breach of the code of conduct. This is the same reason it’s also prohibited for a leader to allocate himself a tender for supply of materials to the company or ministry he heads. Such behavior shows disregard for the poor Rwandans by frustrating government efforts to eradicate poverty. Rwandans have a right to benefit from government programs but leaders who act this way deny them this right. Farmers who sold off the Friesian cows claiming they were too expensive for them to look after is an eye opener for leaders. Maybe its time for a rethink of the policy of indiscriminately forcing farmers to get rid of local breeds; as it has been reported in the eastern province and I believe that a proper probe would unearth a lot more irregularities in the implementation of the cattle stocking project. jtasamba@gmail.com