BEANS AND WOMEN IN RWANDA

Esther Nakkazi in Rwanda

The journey to Kigali started off on the Rwanda Air twin-engine propeller Dash-100, a small 37-seater plane. It was on short notice by Centre for International Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), but it was worth the journey on the earsplitting, rickety plane and heavy rains as we landed at the airport in Kigali.

The good news was that on January 15, 2010, Rwanda scientists at the Institut de Sciences Agronomiques du Rwanda (ISAR) released 15 new bean varieties that are going to benefit thousands of farmers in the central and east African region.

Rwanda and Beans:
For this beans field-learning trip, I think I have learned so much about climbing beans, I am contemplating becoming a bean farmer or changing my name to Ms. Esther Bean.

But seriously, here are some facts about Rwanda and beans, particularly climbing beans, which fascinated me so much, and interestingly, I had never seen them grow in the field.

Rwanda is one of Africa’s most densely populated nations. It relies on beans as the main staple food, source of protein and calories as such beans are consumed on a daily basis by almost everybody. The very poor can eat them alone. 

Luckily, beans described as a ‘poor mans’ meat’ and a second-class protein can be the sole source of protein with very little or no first class protein (animal) supplement. 

That is why Rwandans, who reportedly are the highest consumers of beans in the world at 50-60kgs kgs per capita (per person per year), grow strong and healthy by eating only beans as a source of protein.

They eat the leaf, as a vegetable, the grain at major meal times- lunch, dinner, and kids eat beans for breakfast with tea before going to school. In other countries when one eats a meal like Irish or sweet potatoes than beans, the other food is the bigger portion but in Rwanda, the beans per meal are more than the other food.

Rwanda has one of the highest diversity of beans in Africa. It has so much variety in terms of color, types-bush beans and climbing beans as well as Rwanda farmers have immense knowledge on beans.

The new bean varieties released by ISAR on 15th January. 

For instance according to Augustine Musoni, a bean breeder with ISAR, since the year 2000-2010, Rwanda in partnership with CIAT has developed 35 beans varieties. They have thus, managed to get high yielding, disease resistant and climate change tolerant beans that can easily grow elsewhere in the region.

Rwanda also has the mandate to breed for climbing beans in the region under CIAT. In Rwanda, beans are grown in especially the northern region. 

For our tour, we visited Ruhengere, a 2 hours ride from Kigali, and also Kirambo and Musanze in Bulera district. I must say that Rwanda is a beautiful country with many hills. I can describe it as a high rising brown cake, decorated with green icing sugar with thick chocolate (brown dirty water) flowing along its hills.

With its high population and declining land size, climbing beans allow maximum use of limited land and are comparable to having skyscrapers in cities in terms of space utilization.

Women and Beans:
Beans are described as a woman’s crop. Women in Rwanda plant, cultivate, harvest, store, sell, cook the beans and they are very much involved in the selection of bean varieties developed by plant breeders. 

The farmers’ experience in growing beans is excellent, actually, Rwandan women could be the most experienced about growing beans in the world, with a lot of knowledge the ladies are said to know their beans very well.

They can tell which beans can grow in a particular type of soil and season. Hence, Rwanda bean breeders, have a deep connection with Rwandan women via beans. The breeders cannot release a variety until they get confirmation from women who touch, cook and taste them in the participatory variety bean selection.

“When we are breeding we get women to select the varieties. They have the traditional expertise, they will look at the seed in their hands and just say this variety cannot be grown here or it will not do well,” said Musoni.

A woman farmer in Rwanda tending to her climbing beans.

Women also give beans names in Rwanda. The beans bear scientific names but are also given local names.

One of the varieties released on January 15th was CAB 2 – scientific name, Gasirida, local name after a woman farmer Cansilde Gasirinda.

The women also name some beans after what they look like in terms of colors, shape- ‘red kidney’, or other characteristics like weight, ‘coltan’ because they are heavy and fetch more money just as the mineral coltan.

Jacqueline Mujawamariya, 31 years old has spent many years growing, tending, eating and selling beans. She eats beans with Irish potatoes and posho and does not remember that many days when she had a meal with no beans.

As a bean farmer and trader, she has bought a calf from her beans proceeds. She described the climbing beans –as ‘sweet’ compared to bush beans. But also the climbing beans technology –is comparable to the 'Jack and the Beanstalk', which is extremely useful where land pressure is soaring and the need for higher yields is very intense.

CIAT and Beans:

The partnership between the Centre for International Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Pan-Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) and Rwanda’s ISAR has developed improved climbing beans that slink up stakes two meters high- tripling, and even quadrupling yields.

These beans require stakes and relatively more labor, but they give back assisting in soil nitrogen fixing, as well as reduction of soil erosion in sloping areas that experience heavy rain. 

In Rwanda, the immediate pay off from the high yields of climbing types has catalyzed farmers’ adoption of soil fertility improvements, such as organic amendments and the use of agroforestry. This has led to better soil conservation and more sustainable agro-ecosystems for areas.

According to Dr. Robin Buruchara, Africa regional Coordinator CIAT, the national programmes like ISAR in Rwanda, or Kawanda Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) in Uganda, are given lines for breeding that they make adaptable to the needs of the country.

For instance, the ‘marker assistance selection’, which is basically conventional technology is used to breed varieties that are selected by farmers. CIAT, the custodian of beans varieties, however, does not allow the varieties to be sold after being bred even after the country program adds value because they are a ‘public good’.

That hopefully, is knowledge enough for you to become Mr/Ms. Bean like I would like to become  a bean farmer like the Rwandan women.
Ends-

Uganda will participate in HIV Prevention Microbicide Trials again

The gel used in the trial increased sexual pleasure and it also opened a lot of sexual talk between women and their partners in Uganda.

By Esther Nakkazi

Uganda is ready to participate in another microbicide trial, the results of the failed largest international clinical trial on HIV prevention microbicide not withstanding, said Stephen Malinga, the minister of health at a press conference in Serena hotel.

After a full explanation and knowledge that there is no danger from using the gel, we shall explain this to our participants and urge them to participate again in any other microbicide trials, said Malinga.

At the trial site in Masaka, women who participated in the trials were crest fallen, even if they knew that the gel might not work, they also had very high hopes that it would work.

“The women are disappointed just as we are but they are very appreciative that we have gone back to inform them on the outcomes of the research just as we had promised to do,” said Anatoli Kamali, the Principle Investigator at the Uganda site.

The women were instructed to insert the gel an hour before sex and not to wash after sex. In Uganda all those recruited were potentially high-risk women.

It is disappointing that the gel did not give HIV prevention a chance; the Abstinence Be faithful Condom use (ABC) strategy and female condoms remain the only option for HIV prevention for women.

Kamali says Uganda will participate in HIV prevention microbicide trials again because huge infrastructure was built and women in Uganda and their partners have demonstrated that they used and very much liked the gel during sex. The gel increased sexual pleasure and it also opened a lot of sexual talk between men and women in Uganda.

“The general concept is that women are willing to use the gel. The next trial that comes around in two years time will be with ARVs and we shall have full participation,” said Kamali.

In Uganda 840 women participated in the trial at the Medical Research Council/Uganda virus Research institute (MRC/UVRI) in Masaka site. The largest international clinical trial to date into a preventive HIV gel found no evidence that the vaginal microbicide, PRO 2000 reduces the risk of HIV infection in women, scientists announced today.

“We need an arsenal of intervention. The failure of this candidate does not mean that we shall stop participation in HIV prevention microbicide trials,” said Dr. David Kihumuro Apuuli, the director general Uganda Aids Commission (UAC).

The Politics of the Global Fund in Uganda

By Esther Nakkazi

Five months ago officials from the Global Fund came to Uganda and at a press conference at the media centre, announced the disbursement of $4.2 million the next month, to avert a treatment crisis in the country at the time.
To date the money has never been disbursed and Uganda has failed to qualify for Round 9 of the Global Fund causing a $20 million funding gap in HIV and early deaths due to treatment interruptions.
HIV/AIDS financing delays and cuts by development partners are now causing rationing of anti-retroviral drugs and most medical institutions are turning away new patients, unable to enroll them for the life-prolonging drugs. The latest has been a cut from the US President Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) funding for paediatric HIV, which will cut at least $1million next year.
Prof Addy Kekitiinwa the executive director Baylor Uganda Children’s Foundation during the annual paediatric conference said – ‘As I speak now, I have a letter from PEPFAR asking me to stop enrolling children. Even if all factors remain constant we still need the government to help or we shall not achieve universal access.
Starting April next year PEPFAR the biggest funder of HIV programmes in Uganda will cut up to $1million from the $7million annual contribution it was making to the paediatric HIV programme. Also the Global Fund money although available is not yet accessible.
Officials from the ministry of Health say that the Global Fund money has been disbursed from New York to Uganda’s central bank account, but there are administrative problems that are hindering its use.
Dr. Francis Runumi the commissioner Planning and Development at the ministry of Health says although the money is on the account but the Global Fund at first disbursed it to the wrong account and later when the signatory to that account was changed, it caused a further delay. In the meantime patients are dying due to ARV stock outs.
The signatory to the account at the central bank was Mary Nannono, the former permanent secretary in the ministry of Health who was interdicted and replaced by Dr. Sam Zaramba acting in the position.
Officials from the ministry of Health who want to keep this out of the media say, they thought it would be automatic for the process to accept a new signatory but as it turned out, due to the high sensitivity by the bank, a lot of technicalities need to be dealt with before the unanticipated long delay is sorted out.

Does the Global Fund have Bad Will for Uganda?
The $4.2 million, which was supposed to be a stopgap measure, in March 2009 is now expected to be disbursed early 2010. But in this entire saga, some officials accuse the Global Fund of having bad will for Uganda.
They say this could be due to the strained relationship, which was created when in 2005, serious mismanagement of $1.6 million was discovered leading to the suspension of financing to Uganda.
However, other sources attribute Uganda’s problems with the Global Fund, to its failure to change its management system. While the Global Fund insists that Uganda should change and operate under the project mode, the government still wants the money to go into budget support.
But Ugandan officials say that even if the Global Fund does not say it explicitly they do not want their money to go to budget support. They want Uganda to go into project mode where they can monitor money, can have a say about the expenditure and most importantly where the Global Fund prominence is proclaimed.
Some say it has a stereotyped way of working, which is too limited in its approach. For instance when Uganda mismanaged only $1.6million they rushed to arrest the culprits, that was not bad at all given the corruption in Uganda but again there was no mechanism for redress.
According to records, at least 70 percent of the people who had not accounted for the funds have already been cleared, recovering at least $1 million from institutions and individuals implicated in the misappropriation.
But even then the funds that could be assessed in Round 7 and Round 3 are not yet available although the two parties had earlier this year committed to resolve all outstanding issues so that the intended beneficiaries are not affected.
The weaknesses that the two sides had were identified and rectified. We shall ensure that the bad past is left behind, said Dr. Richard Nduhura the state minister for Health during a Press conference held to announce the stop gap measure earlier in the year.
This signified a renewed commitment from the Uganda Government to address past weaknesses and strengthen health systems in the long term.
But ministry of health officials say that all other conditions that were required by Uganda like improvement of the procurement and supply chain and a third party agent have now been fullfilled. But there is no money yet.
“If we could access the $254 million for the two rounds, it would be enough to take us through the next two years. We have lost Round 9 but it was rated fit for resubmission,” said Jim Arinaitwe the Global Fund coordinator at Uganda Aids Commission (UAC).
The country deliberately missed out on Round 8 of the Global Fund last year but had approval for two proposals under round 3 and 7, which were supposed to provide enough funds for running HIV programmes. But funds did not come in on time, which has in the long run affected treatment programmes.
The Global Fund has pumped nearly $52 billion in fighting the ravages of the HIV pandemic. Over the next year, the Global Fund will be another $2 billion short to meet its goals for funding new programmes.
To Uganda health officials the Global Fund remains an enigma -on one hand there is a lot of flexible but on the other hand there is no flexibility. It says something can be done but when it is suggested and presented on paper it is denied!

Baylor Uganda Children demand Rights

By Esther Nakkazi

“We have a right, the right of living; we have a hope, for the future; we need care; we need love; we have to grow, its a generation!” sang children swinging their hands and dancing away to the drum beat.
Child labor, defilement, child sacrifice, we need our rights! recited an HIV positive young girl, a member of the Baylor Uganda children choir at the 3rd annual national paediatric HIV&AIDS with a theme ‘accelerating access to HIV prevention, care and treatment for all children,’ conference held in Kampala 26-27th November.
The conference this time emphasized the need for indiscriminate universal rights to counseling, treatment, paediatric care and rights to all, irrespective of age, gender, race and geographical location.
“Children’s rights continue to be violated by their parents and care takers. They refuse to bring the children for testing and treatment and some of them even take them away,” said Prof. Addy Kekitiinwa the executive director Baylor Uganda Children’s Foundation.
This years World Aids Day slogan is ‘Access my Right, Testing my responsibility’ which has been coined from the global theme of ‘Universal Access and Human Rights.’
In Uganda, health officials say many parents deny their children treatment or drop it and opt for spiritual healing- just because the children cannot make their own decisions. But this should not mean they be denied treatment.
In Uganda 120,000-150,000 children aged less than 15 years are estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS of which 50,000 have advanced HIV disease and need anti retroviral therapy (ART).
HIV is one of the major killers of children in Uganda, one in six deaths in children is as a result of HIV infection, 30 percent of HIV infected children will die by one year of age and 50 percent before the age of two unless they are identified and treated early.
One of the Baylor choir children said some parents have become a menace and do not want to look after their HIV positive children. Some parents sell the children’s items, others are drunkards and some even chase the children away from the homes when they establish that they are HIV positive. But these children like all other children and have simple basic needs.
The Government has come up to assure that it will ensure scale-up of access to services for Early Infant HIV testing and treatment, and for care and support for all children that are rejected and affected by HIV.
But although enrollment of children into HIV care has improved over the past one year, it is still very low compared to that of adults. Of the 193,000 people accessing ART by the end of June 2009, only 16,500 (8.5%) were children aged less than 15 years of age.
Children in rural settings do not have easy access to ART as compared to those in urban settings, over 60 percent of children on ART of children are treated in urban settings.
One of the major problems is that the unique and dissimilar issues of children infected and affected by HIV&AIDS are often lumped-up together with those of adults, giving children’s issues less attention than required or no attention at all.
Aids where did you come from, we are stigmatized in school, even in church; defilement, child sacrifice we need our rights! Aids where did you come from, parents so discriminative! the Baylor youngsters danced away as they exited from the conference hall.
Ends-

The History of Pit Latrines in Uganda

By Esther Nakkazi

The history of the pit latrine in Uganda documentation starts in the 1950s when the colonialists started to promote sanitation and the chiefs enforced pit latrine construction and monitoring. 

At the time latrine coverage in Uganda was almost 100 percent. 

As a way to promote hygiene and sanitation, each household had to have a dish rack for drying the household cutlery, a bathing shelter for a bathroom, a pit latrine and a granary for food storage.

The pit latrine was built 30 meters away from the home and was 15-20 meters deep. The superstructure was made of mud and wattle; the slab was from hardwood timber. 

A shrub with soft, wide, sweet smelling leaves was planted near the pit latrine to be used as toilet tissue. 

I was born in the city and we had a flush toilet. When I visited my grandma (RIP -2015) as a child in the 80's I was surprised. Grandma's toilet was one such toilet and since I thought the two logs that separated to  give space to the pit was going to collapse any minute and I fall in the pit. 

I just cried. I was scared. My mother had to stand outside and assure me that she would hold me in case of anything. 

As I remember the toilet had a door made of reeds or bamboo that they could easily move to open and close!

Toilet matters were not discussed publicly and toilets had different names for the diverse people in Uganda. It it was unheard of to discuss poo in public and it was a taboo to talk about it during mealtimes. It still stands today.

All the materials used in the household hygiene and sanitation system were locally available. The pit latrine for the household with at least 10 members would last for 15-20 years.

After Uganda got independence in 1964, power shifted to the central government and there were no chiefs to enforce and monitor sanitation programs. 

The Public Health Act of 1964, with various sanitation and waste related ordinances or by-laws prepared by local government, were formulated.

As Uganda's population grew, rural urban migration set in and sanitation ceased to be a priority. A World Bank study, ‘Scaling up sanitation and hygiene in Uganda 2007’, shows a trend in latrine coverage with 98% coverage in the 1960s and going down to 45% and 20% in the1970’s and 1980s respectively.

The coverage was so bad at the time, amplified by the political turmoil and civil unrest. In 1974 the government enacted a new law that required each household to construct a pit latrine - 30 meters away from the house and 15 meters deep.

Even if the law was tough then with a fine of Shs. 20 (less than a $ cent today) or the head of the household getting arrested and tried by the village courts, many households defaulted on having pit latrines.

Increasingly in the rural areas, people got arrested and publicly got embarrassed about not having latrines but that did not change the attitude much. 

But even at the national level, there is sectoral fragmentation and sanitation is not a priority.

According to the World Bank, latrine coverage in Uganda today has stagnated at 60 percent since 2002. 

Studies also show that 75 percent of Uganda’s disease burden is preventable and linked to poor hygiene and inadequate sanitation facilities and practices.

The provision of sanitation is a key development intervention, which also improves an individual’s health, well being and economic productivity. 

At the household level, besides the well-known health outcomes of improved sanitation, there is increased comfort, privacy, convenience, and safety for women especially at night and for children, dignity, social status, and cleanliness.

Some organizations like Water For People-Uganda have introduced the EcoSan toilets, which if used properly can help with latrine coverage because they are low cost. 

I hope low-cost toilets come out of the innovations done by our innovators. Happy World toilet day! 

Adaptation-Uganda's priority at the Copenhagen talks

By Esther Nakkazi
After three days of congress, last week 1-4 November, Uganda’s priority at the international climate change talks will be adaptation. There are only four weeks to the climate- change summit in Copenhagen.
Although Africa is supposed to come up with a single voice, to seal the deal that will bring unity against global warming, it is imperative that each nation has its priority area; in Uganda’s case adaptation will be the frontline choice.
But if Uganda wants to focus on adaptation it has to put in place realistic adaptation strategies for sustainability. Countries that are unable to withstand the current climate change shocks may not be able to survive.
Jessica Ariyo, the minister of environment, said Uganda would toe the line of adaptation but policies need to be put in place to allow for the process to happen and a mechanism to transfer funds from polluters to non- polluters.
Some of the adaptation strategies include building capacities of communities at risk, strengthening early warning systems, developing and transferring homegrown technologies and solutions.
“We also want to see that the Kyoto protocol is scaled up and more carbon trading projects implemented here because we have implemented the programmes they told us to set up,” said Ariyo.
Uganda the chair of the climate change unit at the African Union is also planning to use its proactive climate change committee in parliament, the only one in Africa so far, to push for its stand at Copenhagen.
As the Kampala African initiative on climate change conference kicked off at Munyonyo Speke Resort, the 750 participants, who attended from all districts in Uganda, heard that the people at the local level are already finding ways to adapt to climate change.
But adaptation strategies should be improved like storage of water through man- made interventions like rainwater harvesting and improving the credibility of the meteorology data.
For example people in the northern region of Uganda are already into rainwater harvesting to reduce the vulnerabilities of local communities during prolonged droughts.
But more investment needs to be made in the meteorological department –increase hydrological stations- to have reliable data that farmers can use. Currently most of the data disseminated about the whether predictions is not reliable.
Ariyo said the government is going to consolidate and empower the meteorological department, bringing all partners together for accurate data and climate modeling through a new body the Uganda Meteorological Agency.
“We can only make our basis for science from what we discover. Then we need to improve the way we disseminate this information, we do know that rainfall intensity will change, droughts will be prolonged but can only say this on the basis of science,” said Dr. Richard Taylor, of the University of College of London.
The African Initiative congress on Climate change had at least 300 students active participants who were not only open to learning through asking hard questions but also sustaining an all round comprehensive dialogue.
Dr. John English, executive director, CIGI, said the momentum should be continued as the youth drive it forward. Students said they want climate change to be integrated in school curriculums.
“The participation of the youth in this conference was strategic. We have to engage the youth if we have to make a successful intervention in climate change- intergenerational equities or inequities have to involve the youth,” said Nelson Sewankambo, the director African Initiative.
The congress was a joint initiative between the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI)- a think tank in Canada, the Salama SHIELD Foundation (SSF) a non-governmental organization registered in Canada, Uganda and Malawi as well as Makerere University.
“We have had a comprehensive dialogue, which be emulated in our districts. As people go to Copenhagen to seal the deal- we have already sealed ours- through exchanging ideas and agreeing to work together, said Sewankambo.
Ends.

Using ICTs for disaster management

By Esther Nakkazi

Floods are on the rise. Temperatures are going up. Disasters are imminent everywhere but it has been proven that Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) are useful to avert them.
Now disaster management experts say an emergency ICT disaster Fund should be set up for the east African region. The Fund could be contributed to from the proposed African climate change Fund and used to predict, create awareness and preparedness of communities to improve response capability in disasters.
Research done with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has proven that an investment of $1 in ICTs used for disaster management through monitoring and response could save $14- $22 for rehabilitation after the disaster.
“We should incorporate all systems for instance early warning systems are critical but it is useless if you cannot disseminate information to evacuate and people can not respond in a positive manner,” said Dr. Cosmas Zavazava, the head of developed countries, ITU.
“So alerting communities should be in real time from the right source, with an ability to monitor, predict and communicate. Only ICTs can do that successfully.” This was during a meeting in Kampala on the use of ICTs in disaster management.
In the face of climate change, more disasters with higher intensity have been predicted to occur. ICTs can ensure that adequate measures are implemented before disasters strike, the meeting heard.
Common disasters in the east African region include floods, hail storms, volcanic activity, landslides, droughts and earthquakes while communication channels like mobile phones, satellite radios, emails, sirens, radios and televisions, emails, cell broadcasting and text messages could be used.
ICTs could be used for data collection, processing, analyzing and dissemination. Ms. Rose Nakabugo Bwenvu said one of the challenges to disaster management was data collection, analysis, and the lack of a database on many of these situations.
“It is a multi sectoral problem, we do not have most of the data and cannot coordinate it. We do not even have the number for the losses of both lives and property, but ICTs could be very helpful,” said Ms. Bwenvu of the emergency operation centre of the Office of the Prime minister.
If all national disaster management centres through the region used ICTs, then it would be possible to construct hazard maps and quantify the disasters as well as to coordinate the different systems. It would also be possible to establish a regional database.
ICTs such as mobile phones have been successfully used in disaster management. In 2007 during the floods in Uganda, ITU deployed telecommunications equipment to save hundreds of lives. More deaths have been averted using mobile phones on Lake Victoria.
It has been a year since Zain, one of the leading mobile network operators in Africa, teamed up with Ericsson and the GSMA development Fund to use Information Communication Technology (ICT) to save lives on Lake Victoria.
Now the project has proof that using mobile phones with the emergency maritime communication system that has been established by Zain can save the 200,000 fishers’ lives on lake Victoria.
Fred Masadde, external affairs manager Zain Uganda says they are handing over the project to the Lake Victoria Basin Commission to become a Public Private partnership. Some data suggests that 5,000 people die on the Lake every year.
The project works through a telecommunications network that captures all the data, a model rescue coordination centre where the coordinates are sent and triangulated to the search and rescue service centre to implement the rescue.
Masadde says the project was started as a social responsibility programme but since Zain is a business venture they think the governments in the region should take it up and scale it up to cover the whole lake Victoria.
Tullow Oil Company has also as part of its social responsibility been able to save lives with the rescue services it set up on Lake Albert. The community was equipped with a mobile phone and a rescue boat.
Other mobile phone operators like Safaricom, MTN and Vodacom in east Africa could join by using Zain’s base stations to share the sites and limit carbon footprint but also it makes a lot of economic sense.
But also the system could be used by such organizations as the Lake Vitoria Environment Management programme (LVEMP) to register and monitor boats on the lake, monitoring the fish catch everyday and integrated in the command and control system for the police to use.
Ends-