Rwanda, Japan signs $15m irrigatiin deal #rwanda

Kigali — The agricultural sector of Rwanda has received a
grant from the Japanese government to enhance irrigation
in Ngoma district.
Tomio Sakamoto, the Consul at the Japan Embassy in Kigali
said: "We aim at promoting market oriented agriculture and
value added agriculture to improve productivity which is the
backbone of economic development of the country covering
over 42% of GDP."
The agreement was signed by Minster of finance and
economic planning Amb. Claver Gatete and Amb. Kazuya
Ogawa the Ambassador of Japan to Rwanda. The project
will be implemented in October this year.
Sakamoto said Japan reviewed the challenges in the
farming sector and the effect on agriculturaal productivity
putting emphasis on post harvest challenges. The japanese
governmnet seeks to find solution to such challenges
through Economic infrastructure development among
others.
The grant is for construction of dams, irrigation canals,
bridges, a 900,000meter cubes water reservoir, a solar
power unit and regulating tanks.
Sakamoto said: "Irrigation will be done on over 300hactares
of land which will contribute to improvement in food
security of the country."
He urged farmers to improve yields of rice, fruits and
vegetables.
The grant will be implemented by the Japanese
International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
"We have helped the country in construction of the Rusumo
international bridge that links to Tanzania and here we
believe this is going to promote trade between the two
countries and help the country reached its development
targets as set out in the Economic Development and Poverty
Reduction Strategy 2 (EDRPS2) plus its Vision 2020,"
Sakamoto said.
He said Japan supported the country in extension of
electricity facilities, establishing a One stop center, and
provided technical assistance in strengthening public
transportation.
Japan has another project called the Human Resource
Development project which is aimed at sustaining the
country's economic growth.
Ogawa said: "Science and technology are one of the pillars
of Vision 2020. We have continued to provide education
infrastructure, which is helping the country meet its Vision
2020. In addition to this irrigation project, in agriculture
sector, Japan has dispatched an irrigation advisor to the
Ministry of Agriculture and will start giving technical
assistance to small holder farmers."
Ogawa said: "The project is designed to improve livelihoods
of all small holder farmers through various activities. This
shows the Japanese continuous support to the government
and we intend to continue supporting the country in
achieving its economic objectives."
Since 2008-2013, Japan has invested over $335.8million in
Rwanda.