KIRUNDO, Burundi (Feb. 9, 2025) — Kirundo Province has received a crucial delivery of emergency food aid to support villages devastated by a severe drought. On Friday, authorities delivered 1,335 tons of corn and 112 tons of rice to communities in the districts of Busoni, Bugabira, and Kirundo, where crops were destroyed during the early months of the agricultural season.
The drought has affected more than 20,000 families, with Bugabira district hardest hit, where 11,266 families are impacted. Busoni follows with 10,412 families affected, while 558 families in Kirundo district are also struggling. As sporadic rainfall continues, local communities remain hopeful but depend on continued government support to secure future harvests.
The hardest-hit villages include Gatare, Gatete, Kivo, Munazi, and Kigoma in Gatare; Rwibikara, Marembo, and Nyabisindu in Busoni; and Yaranda, Kiyanza, and Muramba in Kirundo. According to Leonidas Rivuzimana, the director of agriculture in Kirundo, the drought’s impact has been severe, particularly in these nine villages.
The crisis began in November and December 2024, when the region’s crops — primarily beans, maize, and sorghum — were in their blooming stages. The prolonged heat left the crops withered, devastating many families who relied on the harvest for food. In response, food aid was distributed to affected households, with 50 families receiving an initial portion of 5 kilograms of rice and 15 kilograms of maize.
Rivuzimana noted that while the drought severely impacted some areas, other districts, such as Bwambarangwe, Gitobe, Vumbi, and Ntega, saw relatively good harvests during the same period. He also pointed to the region’s underutilized irrigation infrastructure, which he said was designed to mitigate such crises but failed to account for the province’s unique geography.
A visit from Jean Claude Karerwa Ndenzako, the President’s Principal Advisor for political, social, and cultural affairs, further highlighted the crisis. Karerwa Ndenzako commended the resilience of local communities and urged residents to continue cultivating their land and conserve water for crops. “You are asked to keep cultivating and protect the environment to mitigate the effects of climate change,” he said. He also expressed solidarity with the affected families, noting that climate-related crop losses are a global issue and encouraged neighboring countries to support the victims.
Despite these efforts, many citizens have raised concerns about the upcoming agricultural season. Local farmers are pleading for seeds to plant in the next cycle, as the drought has left them with no resources to sow new crops. “All our seeds have dried in the fields. We thank the Head of State for the help, but we need seeds,” one resident said.
