CHAPTER 4
STRENGTHENING FOOD SECURITY AND REDUCING POVERTY IN BURUNDI
Rural Burundi is dominated by small-scale, subsistence- oriented family farming units that use traditional, low-yield, multi-cropping practices. At the time of project prepara- tion, about 72 percent of Burundi’s population was consid- ered food insecure, with the country exhibiting the second
Against that backdrop, in 2014 the OPEC Fund approved a US$20 million loan for an operation co-financed with IFAD and the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program to develop and rehabilitate irrigation infrastructure for rice production, as well as to build and rehabilitate rural
highest malnutrition rate in the world. While Burundi had histori- cally been self-sufficient in terms of food production, the 1993-2005 civil war left the country with a structural food deficit estimated at one-third of total consump- tion. During the crisis, looting and destruction of household goods
feeder roads to improve access to production zones, markets and milk collection centers. Additional components aimed to develop rice and milk value chains and to foster more nutritionally diverse diets. The program, which started disbursing in 2016 and was completed in 2024, supported the government’s
and livestock deprived farmers of their most important income generating assets. Distribution and marketing channels for agricultural and livestock inputs and products collapsed together with milk-processing facilities. The animal health system collapsed following the destruction of infrastructure and dissolution of services. Displacement of the population caused a return to slash-and-bum agricul- ture and rapid deforestation. Agricultural output declined sharply. As a consequence, Burundi became a net food importer, with large parts of the population reliant on food aid. Beyond the civil war, climate change has increasingly disrupted rainfall patterns, threatening farmers’ livelihoods.
National Agriculture Investment Plan aiming to raise produc- tivity, ensure the sustainable management of soil and water resources, as well as to strengthen farmer capacity.
The supported program focused on two provinces in the Moso region (Ruyigi and Rutana) and three provinces in the Imbo region (Cibitoke, Bujumbura Rural and Bubanza), covering an area of 6,400 km 2 , with an estimated popu- lation of 2.3 million in 2013, representing over 23 percent of Burundi’s total population. The regions’ population was predominantly rural (95 percent) and mainly engaged in subsistence agriculture and livestock (cattle, goats and poultry) production, with very limited food processing. Most farms were small, in particular in the Imbo region where over 40 percent of farms had an average size of only 0.2 hectares. While having major potential in terms of fertile land, the program area had, in recent years, experi- enced major water deficits (up to six or seven months of drought), leading to chronic food insecurity and making recourse to irrigation essential. Under component 1 supported by the OPEC Fund, the program developed 2,418.54 hectares of marshes and irrigated plains, reforested 890 hectares and protected 10,848 hectares of watersheds, all meeting or nearly
58
Powered by FlippingBook