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Civil society raises queries over agriculture funding

Saturday May 20 2017

The Rwanda Civil Society Agriculture Forum has faulted the priorities listed in the Ministry of Agriculture’s Rwf91.2 billion budget for the 2017/18 financial year. The group cited sharp cutbacks in allocations to key sub-programmes, which are considered relevant to achieving inclusive, pro-poor planning.

In particular, the forum warns that the small allocations towards research, technology transfer, advisory services and equipping farmers with skills could hamper efforts to achieve next year’s production targets.

The forum’s queries were raised in their analysis of the budget allocation for the agricultural sector, which was tabled in parliament last week as part of their contribution to national budget preparation.

The government is expected to increase funding for agriculture and animal resources by Rwf839.9 million, which should mainly go towards soil conservation, land husbandry, livestock development and nutrition and household vulnerability.

However, figures show a decrease in funding for seed development from about Rwf4.2 billion last year to Rwf1.8 billion this year.

There has also been a Rwf10.8 billion decrease in the allocation for value-chain development and private sector investment, from Rwf33.5 billion last year to Rwf22.6 billion this year.

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Research funding

Funding for research and technology transfer, advisory services and equipping farmers with skills has been slashed to Rwf4.1 billion from Rwf6.8 billion.

“The funding allocations seem unrealistic especially in trying to achieve the targets set for crop productivity by facilitating access to improved seeds and fertilisers under the crop intensification programme, as well as conducting research on new seed varieties and production of seeds locally,” reads part of the analysis.

Citing previous cases when seeds were imported and reached farmers late and with imperfections, civil society groups are concerned that the decline in this year’s research funding compared with last year’s could expose small-holder farmers to further challenges.

Only a few seed varieties are sourced locally and are often in short supply and expensive, which is the same case with fertilisers. Farmers and dealers said that except for some subsidised grain seeds and fertilisers, more than 70 per cent of priority crop seeds like Irish potato and cassava have to be sourced from neighbouring countries.

READ: Rwanda plans to revamp agriculture research centres

“There is a need for more research, soil tests and land mapping to enable farmers to access seeds and fertilisers that are suitable for their land,” said John Bosco Nyemazi, Public Policy and Advocacy co-ordinator at CLADHO, an umbrella organisation of local civil society organisations.

His concerns were supported by Drothee Mukeshimana, a representative of farmers from Nyanza district who told Members of Parliament that some of the inputs are either faulty or not compatible to local conditions.

“We need support in terms of testing seeds and fertiliser that can match the soil,” she said.

READ: North Kivu farmers decry lack of seeds

The civil society analysis shows that government initiatives on selected crops, which farmers were asked to plant were not yielding the anticipated output in some areas because there were no prior soil audits, hence major soil degradation and low productivity.

READ: Farmers urged to grow more bio-fortified beans

New budget

When contacted for a comment, the Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB) and officials from the agriculture ministry declined to respond to our questions citing published stories by this newspaper that were critical of the ministry.

Equally, Minister Geraldine Mukeshimana did not answer our questions during her latest “Ask Minagari,” a weekly interactive Twitter session where she responds to users’ questions related to the sector.

The Rwanda Civil Society Agriculture Forum want their proposals considered by the government in the new budget whose reading is expected in mid-June.

Analysts say the country would have to inject substantial amounts of money in putting up relevant infrastructure as well as coming up with incentives for researchers in the agriculture sector if it is to end dependence on imported inputs.

However, according to Alex Ariho, a global agribusiness value development expert, the sector can still record considerable transformation by maximising utilisation of available resources.

“The issue is not whether the budget is low or high, but we need to innovate when it comes to input distribution, accessibility, affordability, and quality. Increased investments in inputs should increase access for smallholder farmers,” said Mr Ariho.