Kakamba Canal, the bottleneck of rice growing in Luvungi

Luvungi, in the territory of Uvira, in the province of South Kivu, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo. We are in what is called the Plaine de la Ruzizi, this river which serves as a natural border between the Democratic Republic of Congo and its two eastern neighbors: Rwanda and Burundi.

Luvungi has six important rice-growing areas: Kakamba, Rurambira, Vétérinaire, Kiringye, Ndogombo, and Rugoze. As a result of insecurity in the region, many rice farmers are cultivating in the Kakamba, Rurambira, Veterinary blocks. The three blocks are fed by the main Kakamba canal, which is in advanced disrepair.

In Luvungi, as elsewhere in this Ruzizi plain - and in the territories of Fizi and Walungu in South Kivu and Kalemie in the province of Tanganyika -, Rikolto in DR Congo is implementing the rice component of the Integrated Agricultural Growth Program in the Great Lakes, PICAGL, a Congolese government project financed by the World Bank. Here, the agricultural potential is enormous but rice farmers who are members of agricultural cooperatives and agri-multipliers have difficulty irrigating their rice fields. Fault? Failure to develop the main Kakamba canal. Consequence: very few harvests while the hopes of rice farmers are high. The shortfall is enormous for agri-multipliers and rice growers who have adopted the techniques learned in the various farmer field schools, and CEPs.

When a lack of water causes a rice farmer to lose…

Some rice farmers supported in the CEPs have adopted GIFS (integrated soil fertility management) and SRI (intensive rice growing system) technology. To illustrate my point, let's meet Musobwa Mahombi, a resident of the Maendeleo district in Luvungi.

Here is what this farmer told me: “I planted an area of 4 hectares because I was personally amazed by the results we had in the Faida CEP and the GIFS and SRI techniques that the Rikolto agronomists provided us with. taught us and donated 4 bags of paddy rice to our small plot at the CEP.”

The peasant field school had a total area of 0.1 hectares. We managed to produce 64 kg on a strip of land of 0.016 hectares with integrated soil fertility management. Which is equivalent to 6 tonnes per hectare. In a similar area, we produced 50kg with an intensive rice growing system. Which represents a production of 5 tonnes per hectare.

… yet promised success

Musobwa continued: “This pushed me to ask the agronomist for Mugwiza seed to cultivate a large area. To remedy this difficulty which did not depend on me or other rice farmers despite my limited means, I was obliged to rent a motor pump in order to irrigate my fields with water coming from ponds abandoned by certain fish farmers. I was forced to pay 10 US dollars per day and 5 dollars for fuel in order to irrigate my rice fields while in this production basin, you can count on your fingertips those who have them, the demand being high compared to the availability of this small machine which plays a very vital role for farmers in general and rice farmers in particular who cultivate in season B in Luvungi. »

We expect it to be the start of a good adventure as we read about in novels, but it was without counting. Mahombi was not at the end of his troubles. “Despite all the expenses I made, I collected almost nothing because the motor pump had broken down. No more water in the canal could supply my 4 hectares. There was general panic. I spent 240 US dollars on irrigation alone due to 60 US dollars every week because the rice was in the heading period. I only got 1.5 tonnes from 4ha when I expected to harvest more than 20 tonnes, it’s really a total failure. But being a rice farmer, I will not give up because I have been growing rice for 25 years and even my father grew it too,” he says, disappointed.

His call today? He would like PICAGL to carry out something that is planned in the project: hydro-agricultural works. For him, and this is the wish of all rice farmers in the area, the Kakamba Canal must be developed as quickly as possible because many rice farmers depend on it to irrigate their fields. Without water in the canal, rice cultivation in Luvungi tends towards what it is not in essence: rainfed rice cultivation! Which would destroy the efforts of producers who would end up giving up.

Rareté de l’eau : le manque à gagner des agri-multiplicateurs

La COOCAPA, une coopérative de Bwegera, non loin de Luvungi, a été sélectionnée parmi les agrimultiplicateurs des semences de riz dans le cadre du PICAGL. Mais elle a eu du mal à atteindre ses objectifs : produire 5 tonnes à l’hectare. Byaruremba Seremba, agronome de cette coopérative, croit savoir pourquoi : « On ne peut se cacher la vérité : nous savons tous les causes qui ont poussé à ne pas atteindre 5 tonnes par hectare dans notre champ de multiplication des semences de riz, malgré l’accompagnement technique des Agronomes de Rikolto ». Il pointe plusieurs problèmes, tous liés à l’eau.

Selon Byaruremba, les champs de multiplication de semences ont été installés au cours de la saison B, saison au cours de laquelle les précipitations sont faibles dans le bassin de Luvungi. Le deuxième problème pointé est le non-aménagement du canal principal de Kakamba qui devrait alimenter plus de 50 hectares emblavés.

Toujours selon lui, les cultivateurs de patate douce et tomates n’ont pas rendu facile la tâche. Ces derniers ayant leurs champs au bord du canal, certains par la mauvaise volonté, se réveillent la nuit pour dévier la direction de l’eau irriguant les champs des agri-multiplicateurs de riz vers leurs propres champs.

Et comme l’argent se glisse partout, il fait aussi partie du problème. Du moins en ce qui concerne sa gestion. « La mauvaise gestion de la contribution financière que nous avions cotisée pour les travaux hebdomadaires d’aménagement des points de déviation d’eau fortement endommagés a constitué un autre frein. Chaque organisation devrait contribuer 200 dollars américains mais d’autres n’ont pas contribué, raison pour laquelle on n’a pas fini tous les travaux d’aménagement des sites ciblés par notre organisation », m’a-t-il expliqué.

Dans le bloc rizicole de Kakamba, 10 organisations paysannes avaient les champs de multiplication des semences de riz. L’agronome soupire : « Vous comprenez que 50 hectares ont été emblavés par ces dix organisations, rien que pour la semence, dans notre bloc. Il y avait une sorte de combat entre nous car tout le monde voulait à tout prix réaliser ses objectifs. Il fallait à tout prix que le champ soit irrigué même si le canal nous livrait très peu d’eau ».

Hydro-agricultural developments to “avoid conflicts around water”

Given this continuing situation, farmers are resorting to the village's notability as well as the Congolese National Police to decide between the conflicting parties. But the police and the notables do not control the problem and their decisions, biased, are motivated by money. This client-led justice endangers social cohesion. To address these water-related conflicts, urgent action is required. Yes, urgent community planning action! And Rikolto has already identified priority damaged sites, where hydro-agricultural developments should be carried out with the agreement of the community. Once these arrangements have been made, the surrounding community will be able to set up an elected committee. Around each hydro-agricultural development, each elected committee will have the task of managing water well to avoid conflicts around this vital commodity.

Before the start of the project, Rikolto had placed great emphasis on good synchronization between the marsh development work and supporting rice farmers in their efforts to increase yields. In vain! UNOPS, recruited by PICAGL to carry out these developments, failed to respect its commitments, and the mandate was withdrawn. Will these developments now be subcontracted to private entrepreneurs under the supervision of PICAGL coordination units to give hope to Luvungi rice farmers? Or will they end up in the dustbin of history? The near future will tell us.