Kirehe, Bugesera districts to benefit from irrigation project

KIREHE - Kirehe Community-based Watershed Management Project (KWAMP), will start irrigation farming to ensure sufficient food production at the household level in the districts of Bugesera and Ngoma. This was disclosed by Janvier Gasasira, the Coordinator of KWAMP in the Province, while addressing farmers in the two districts, yesterday. Gasasira emphasised that the project will support sustainable operation of affordable irrigation facilities by farmers in the district. He said that irrigation would greatly reduce dependence on rains, and allow farmers to shift to crops of higher value in response to market demand. “We want to shift from subsistence to intensified market-based agriculture in Kirehe and Bugesera Districts. We intend to irrigate and protect thousands of hectares of cultivated areas,” he said. Janvier Gasasira said that a budget has been passed and other modalities were complete, giving a go ahead to the project. “Over 100.000 hectares were earmarked for irrigation...feasibility studies are complete and work is about to commence. At least USD 60 million will be spent on the project”. Protais Murayira, the Mayor of the district, noted that the project was expected to make Kirehe the food basket of the country. He said that the district crop production had always been limited by over dependence on rain. “There are some Sectors like Mahama and Nyamugari, which rarely produce crops due to scarcity of water. So, with irrigation we expect all the land to be productive...We shall feed the country and export crops, no doubt about that,” he said. Jean Paul Rutinduka, 45, a resident of Mahama told The Sunday Times that the irrigation program was long overdue.“In fact, we were wondering how we would match the rest of the district in crop production, when we never get reliable rains. We are ready to help in making the project a success,” he said. Ends