For Tubeho, an association of people living with HIV/Aids, December 2011 will remain a memorable month. That time, the members saw their apiary project proposal receive $13,000 (about Rwf7 million) funding from the American Pepfar (President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief) to assist them produce honey.

With proceeds from the business, the association members hoped to better their livelihood through improved nutrition, pay school fees for their children and acquire livestock for milk and manure for their farms.

The grant was disbursed in three installments through the US embassy in Kigali, with the last batch received in August 2012.

Using the funds, the Karama Sector-based association in Huye District bought a piece of land at Rwf250,000 and constructed a Rwf4.5 million building to shelter the project of 30 modern beehives. They also INVESTED in a honey extractor of Rwf500,000.

Everything moved according to plan, until misfortune struck last year, when members woke up one morning to find that all the modern beehives and the honey extractor had been stolen.

Shattered hopes

Although seven beehives were recovered, hopes of a good honey harvest to supply a ready market in Huye town had been buried, leaving the members in despair.

The vulnerable persons had hoped that with concerted efforts, they would pool resources to not only improve their livelihoods, but also fight stigma among people living with HIV/Aids.

The cooperative had 107 members at its inception in 2010, until last year when members from Nyaruguru District broke away to form their own group—leaving Huye group with 82 members.

"We came together to get rid of isolation, pull together and uplift ourselves from poverty. We planned to grow flowers for the bees, but our project has failed,” said Immaculate Niyonteze, a member of Tubeho Cooperative.

Some colony of bees collapsed after pesticides were sprayed on neighbouring crops, finally wiping out whatever remaining hope of soldiering on. We had been assured of ready market for honey at over Rwf2,000 per kilogramme.

Victor Minani, another member, showed The New Times what remains of the once promising project: an abandoned structure and ruins of traditional beehives.

Some members, however, blame lack of proper protection by leaders of the group for the fast collapse of the project.

"The executive committee of the association should monitor its progress. It is not good to spend days without knowing how the project is running,” said Joseph Mukasa, the brain behind the project.

High stakes

The association is now plotting to resuscitate the project to serve its purpose of according members decent life—without which their lives and those of their children are at stake.

Members say that while they get antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) in time, they lack a proper diet to ensure their bodies respond well to the medication.

ARVs, according to experts, are more effective in inhibiting the virus that causes Aids when patients eat a nutritious and balanced diet. Without good feeding, the medication can weaken the body.

"We grow only sweet potatoes and cassava in this area; so that’s our diet. That is the food we eat and take the medicine as there is no other option,” Vianney Ndereye, a member of Tubeho, said.

Some members said their children have dropped out of school due to lack of tuition.

Nathalie Mukakarengera, the in-charge of social affairs at Karama Sector, said they will give the association technical support and advice as well as follow up on the the implementation of the project more closely.

"We will try to find sponsors for their projects because they really need support to live well,” she said.

Christine Niwemugeni, Huye vice mayor for social affairs, said the first support that the association needs is empowerment through training to ensure they own the project they undertook in a responsible way.

"We will visit the association and understand their challenges; we have to plan how to support them, but the first support is to train them on how to work effectively as a cooperative. If we do not do that, any support might just vanish like the previous one,” Niwemugeni said.

She advised stakeholders to follow up on and monitor progress of the projects.

"There are people who are given a cow, but fail to feed it, leading to its death,” Niwemugeni said.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw