The Senatorial ad hoc committee has on Tuesday afternoon presented its report on issues identified in the Integrated Development Programme (IDP) model villages to the Plenary Sitting of the Senate for deliberation. According to communication from the Parliament, the report will also include issues in other settlement sites where the Government relocates various people in order to address homelessness issues and improve their living conditions. The majority of the beneficiaries were formerly residents of high-risk areas. The ad hoc committee started a two-week tour of 63 integrated model villages across the country on Monday, January 10, 2022, to investigate the challenges that residents of the communal dwellings face and come up with solutions. Such an inquiry concluded on Friday, January 21. The six-person committee, which is headed by Senator Rose Mureshyankwano, was tasked to visit at least two model villages in each district of the country and hold talks with district leaders. It was established by the Senate’s Plenary Session on December 1 last year, following a [preliminary] report presented by Senator Mureshyankwano to the upper chamber of Parliament that cited challenges facing residents of model villages. That report was conducted in model villages in the districts of Nyabihu, Rubavu, Rutsiro, and Musanze. Among the main issues highlighted in the report, there was a lack of appropriate biogas systems (some biogas plants were non-operating), poor maintenance of infrastructure, lack of water and electricity, and malnutrition. As a result of lack of functioning biogas systems, some residents in these villages resorted to using charcoal or firewood for cooking, yet their kitchens were built inside the houses, which damages these houses and negatively affects the residents’ lives. The report also showed that due to poverty and poor mindset, some residents in these model villages have sold off their houses and cows given to them and gone back to deplorable conditions.
