DeSIRA steering committee members met in Nyagatare to review project progress
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DeSIRA project steering committee members met on Wednesday 2 November 2022 in Nyagatare district to review project progress and plan for the next quarter.
The second edition of the steering committee meeting organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) brought together representatives of project implementing partners at the national and district levels including the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI), the University of Rwanda (UR), Rwanda Agricultural and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB), Directors of Agriculture at the level of the district and twelve young innovation facilitators.
In her welcoming remarks, FAO Rwanda Representative Ms. Coumba D. Sow appreciated the progress made by project implementing partners thus far. She also commended the selection of the value chains (maize, rice, Irish potato, cassava, small livestock, and dairy) that the project works to add value to because they play double role in contributing to improving farmers’ livelihoods as well as ensuring food security in 6 selected districts in Rwanda.
“These crops do not only contribute to the uplifting livelihoods of Rwandan citizens but also play a vital role in adding value to nutritious foods. I am grateful to those who were involved in the planning phase of this project for choosing these value chains since they are among the priority crops promoted by the Ministry for Agriculture and Animal Resources. The work done is commendable because it responds to Sustainable Development Goals and Rwanda’s aspirations to strengthen agricultural innovation partnerships and processes that support climate-relevant and sustainable transformation of agriculture systems in Rwanda.” FAO Representative in Rwanda, Coumba Sow said.
Chantal Ingabire, the Director-General of planning at the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources who is also the Chairperson of the DeSIRA project steering committee thanked members for their role in the transformation of the agriculture sector.
She reiterated that Rwanda’s remarkable economic trajectory depends greatly on agriculture for its income, employment opportunities, and improved people’s livelihoods, especially rural inhabitants. However, she stressed that the sector, like many others, continues to facechallenges that need critical reflection.
“We expect DeSIRA to have a significant positive impact on the income and food security not only for farmers but also at national level. This may sound too ambitious but with this kind of commitment from all project actors, we can surely walk the talk and definitely achieve this goal.” She said.
Ms Michela Tomasella, Head of Cooperation at the European Union Delegation in Rwanda applauded DeSIRA’s approach of creating and fostering synergies between research and innovation partnerships for improved farming systems.
“As you already know, DeSIRA is one of the European Union’s key programmes to directly link science and innovation in view of strengthening agricultural innovation partnerships as well as disseminating best practices and processes that support climate-relevant and sustainable transformation of agriculture systems in Rwanda and how they lead to the improved policy and programmes that intend to modernize the agriculture sector.”’
This steering committee meeting reviewed the progress of all project outputs and discussed the challenges identified through diagnostic research, and solutions were proposed and adopted.
Among challenges identified by the project research team, include limited access and high cost of improved quality seeds, inadequate seed multipliers, high cost of inorganic fertilizers, and limited purchasing power by farmers for the above-mentioned products, which limit their involvement in agriculture. The cattle farming systems in Nyagatare equally faces the issue of the lack of a balanced diet, especially during the dry season.
The representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources highlighted what is being done to resolve these issues including subsiding key inputs and distributing free fertilizers to some farmers. The Ministry is going also to revisit the measures put in place to address these challenges through sector working groups and through other decision-making platforms.
The committee reviewed and approved the plan of the next fifteen months and agreed to schedule steering committee meetings every quarter. Participants also committed to mainstream gender and set up clear gender makers that will guide all project implementation phases.
DeSIRA is a four-year project funded by the European Union. It seeks to apply a multi-sector and interdisciplinary approach to spur innovations and improve capacities for climate-smart agriculture both at the local and the national level. The project focuses on the diversification of livestock and crop systems; effective management of irrigated areas; and crop intensification and diversification in drought-prone regions with the aim of reducing poverty and ensuring food and nutrition security in Burera, Rutsiro, Gatsibo, Nyagatare Bugesera, and Ruhango. Its objective is to reduce poverty and ensure food and nutrition security through improved capacities for climate-smart innovations among actors engaged in local innovation partnerships.