The Ministry of Local government (MINALOC) is set to officially close the “Bye-bye Nyakatsi’ programme mid this month, an official has said.In an interview with The New Times yesterday, the head of the Rural Settlement Taskforce in MINALOC, Augustine Kampayana, said the construction of houses for the needy had been completed countrywide apart from only Huye and Gisagara districts in the Southern Province. According to Kampayana, when the programme started in 2010, the target was to construct over 124, 000 houses with MINALOC donating various construction materials including iron sheets, nails, among others.“We have set mid this month as our deadline to have completed the Bye-Bye Nyakatsi Programme across the country and thereafter, the ministry will deliver its final report on this issue to the President’s Office on the 30th of this month” Kampayana said.The official said his ministry had so far spent over Rwf 7 billion on the houses saying a large portion of the funds were spent on purchasing materials.According to the official, districts also contributed to the programme by using their budgets to support the construction efforts in their respective districts.He said the ministry recently held a meeting with all district mayors to review progress, adding that they are currently receiving reports on the programme.Kampayana pointed out that the reports would also reflect the kind of support various stakeholders like NGOs, the business community and religious groups lent to the districts.“I thank the general population for the tremendous support and participation they showed towards the bye-bye nyakatsi programme,” Kampayana said.“I urge every Rwandan to replicate this spirit in all government programmes because it will spur the development of our country.”He noted that in the last national retreat held in Gako, participants requested that various government programmes like land consolidation, community settlement programmes and infrastructural development to employ the anti-nyakatsi approach due to the kind of cooperation lent by the population during its implementation.
