Congolese delegation vows to adopt Umuganda

KICUKIRO - A 37-member Congolese delegation from Bukavu, yesterday, said that it had learned a lot from Rwanda’s monthly community work – Umuganda - and will adopt it in their communities, once they return. The delegation, employees of the World Food Program (WFP), joined their Rwandan colleagues, in Kigali, to construct a four-classroom block for the 12-year Basic Education (12YBE) at Group Scolaire Nyanza, Kagarama sector in Kicukiro District. In an exclusive interview, the head of the Congolese delegation, Florbert Chiribagula Kanyunyi, said that they tried something similar, where residents were required to participate in weekly communal work, but that never worked. “Rwanda’s model is good, everybody participates and it’s organised. I think we shall also adopt your style and do it monthly,” he said, adding that the aim of participating in yesterday’s session was to learn from Rwanda. John Paul Sesonga, a communications expert at World Food Program, pointed out that the organisation wanted to show commitment towards developing the education sector in the country. “We normally work with the Education Ministry especially in facilitating the school feeding programme. However, today, we wanted to show our commitment to continued support to the ministry,” he said. He added that WFP provided food assistance to 350,000 primary school pupils in most insecure food districts especially in the Eastern and Southern Provinces. Sesonga disclosed that they also plan to increase the number of beneficiaries to 500,000. The Executive Secretary of Kagarama sector, Emanuel Manevule, commended WFP and the Congolese delegation for assisting the school. “If we were to use money in construction of this foundation, I think it would cost us over 1.5 million francs. I thank the WFP staff and their colleagues from Congo,” he said.Group Scolaire Nyanza has about 1774 students. Ends