Jacqueline Kabagirwa, 35, lives in the northern Burundi commune of Busoni but because of failed harvests following a drought, she commutes to neighbouring Rwanda, where a day’s work in the fields earns her just enough to feed her family. She tells IRIN of her experience:
“My husband often goes to Rwanda and stays there a week or more but his pay is not enough to sustain the whole family. As I have nothing here, I cannot wait for his return. One of my children is lucky because he gets food at school but how can I tell the others there is nothing to eat for a day or two?
“I leave early in the morning and go to Rwanda to work in the fields. But sometimes I am so tired I cannot wake up early enough. In Rwanda, we go from one household to another asking if they need a hand. If you are lucky, you get work immediately but some have to cover long distances; some even come back without a job. Sometimes, I go with my older child, who is 12.
"With so many Burundians seeking jobs in the fields, the pay has been reduced. We used to get about [US$1.50] but now we only get a third of that. I was lucky this time, because, in addition to my pay, my employer has let me take sorghum from her fields.
“Now that the rains are back I will go once a week, that way I can work in my own field. It is now time for planting sorghum and beans, but we have no seeds.”
Related story: Drought leaves thousands needing food aid
jb/am/mw
“My husband often goes to Rwanda and stays there a week or more but his pay is not enough to sustain the whole family. As I have nothing here, I cannot wait for his return. One of my children is lucky because he gets food at school but how can I tell the others there is nothing to eat for a day or two?
“I leave early in the morning and go to Rwanda to work in the fields. But sometimes I am so tired I cannot wake up early enough. In Rwanda, we go from one household to another asking if they need a hand. If you are lucky, you get work immediately but some have to cover long distances; some even come back without a job. Sometimes, I go with my older child, who is 12.
"With so many Burundians seeking jobs in the fields, the pay has been reduced. We used to get about [US$1.50] but now we only get a third of that. I was lucky this time, because, in addition to my pay, my employer has let me take sorghum from her fields.
“Now that the rains are back I will go once a week, that way I can work in my own field. It is now time for planting sorghum and beans, but we have no seeds.”
Related story: Drought leaves thousands needing food aid
jb/am/mw
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
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