MIDIMAR, UNHCR launch the use of gas to replace firewood for cooking in transit camps receiving Rwandan returnees
MIDIMAR, UNHCR launch the use of gas to replace firewood for cooking in transit camps receiving Rwandan returnees
The Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugees (MIDIMAR) and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) have launched the use of cooking gas in Nyarushishi transit centre, in Rusizi District, to improve health and reduce environmental damage caused by the use of firewood. The new gas program was launched by Hon. Mme. De Bonheur Jeanne d’Arc, the newly appointed Minister of MIDIMAR, and Mr. Ben Boubacar Diallo, UNHCR Head of Field Office, and was accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Infrastructure, Ministry of Environment and the Western Province among others.
Until now, when returnees have arrived in Rwanda where they are received in transit centers before returning to their districts of origin, firewood has been the only available source of energy. Firewood has several negative impacts including inhalation of smoke, security concerns when women travel to fetch firewood and of course degradation of the environment. A recommendation to ban firewood was made during the National Leadership Retreat held in late February 2017, in which top leaders from central and local Government including members of the private sector and civil society convened. MIDIMAR and UNHCR have taken this resolution in stride and are working together to find alternative cooking solutions that are cleaner, healthier and better for the environment.
As the first phase of the new pilot project, MIDIMAR will replace firewood with a more sustainable, clean alternative cooking fuel: gas. The pilot will cover two transit centres, Kijote and Nyarushishi, which are receiving Rwandans coming home after living as refugees in other countries. The pilot will also cover cooking fuel needs for two internment camps hosting and rehabilitating former combatants, Ngoma and Gisovu. MIDIMAR has partnered with IPRC Kigali to manufacture the equipment to use gas for cooking to replace firewood for this pilot project.
It is hoped that this first phase of the pilot could generate recommendations for rollout of alternative cooking solutions for all refugee camps in Rwanda with the aim of contributing to the national Green Growth and Climate Resilience Strategy adopted in 2012. Already, UNHCR is successfully piloting a clean cooking fuel solution with Rwandan company Inyenyeri in Kigeme camp.
More than 3.4 million Rwandans refugees have been assisted to return home since the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. UNHCR supports the Government of Rwanda, through its key Government counterpart MIDIMAR, to receive all returnees when they arrive in the country, and provide them with assistance to return to their places of origin and reintegrate into the local community. UNHCR is providing an annual health insurance plan and a one-time cash assistance upon return to Rwanda. Returnees receive $250 USD per adult and $150 USD per child to ensure that their reintegration is dignified and sustainable.
For more information about the MIDIMAR and UNHCR support to returnees please see these videos: