Share & more
The EU mission in Rwanda has given €17.4 million (US $19.9 million) for the rehabilitation of the southwestern Gitarama-Butare road and the renovation of Butare-Akanyaro drainage channel along the highway, an official told IRIN on Wednesday.
"The funds are already in place to rehabilitate the Gitarama-Butare road but we shall need some extra funds to extend the work to Akanyaro," Jean-Marie Aubry, technical assistant to the EC delegation, said. "At the moment, we are only going to work on the drainage system alongside this route."
He said that the EU mission, in partnership with the government of Rwanda, was trying to get €4.3 million ($4.9 million) for the rehabilitation of the 35 km Butare-Akanyaro road. Akanyaro is a town near the border with Burundi.
The Butare-Akanyaro road enables Rwandan farmers to access markets for their produce in war-torn areas of Burundi and some parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Aubry said that once resurfaced, the 76 km Gitarama-Butare road would boost trade between the two provinces and the Rwandan capital, Kigali. The renovation, scheduled to begin on 19 October, will be undertaken by Satom Sogea of France, and Amsar of Burundi.
People in southwestern Rwanda mainly grow bananas, beans, sorghum and potatoes, which are sold in Kigali and in parts of Burundi.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
