The Ministry in Charge of Emergency Management handed over new homes to more than 500 families affected by the 2023 floods and landslides in Karongi District.
The houses were delivered under the Contingency Emergency Response Component, a World Bank-funded project established to rebuild homes destroyed during the disasters and repair those that could be rehabilitated safely.
J. Damascene Ntirugiribambe, one of the beneficiaries, said his former home near Ndaba Rock could not be compared with the new house.
“We received the house with great joy because the disasters had destroyed our home near Ndaba Rock. Our former house cannot be compared with this one.
This house is strong and modern. We thank President Kagame. This has made us very happy as residents, and we support him,” Ntirugiribambe said.
The May 2023 floods and landslides killed 16 people and injured 12 others in Karongi. They destroyed 133 houses and damaged another 346, while 238 homes were identified for relocation because they were situated in high-risk areas.
At the time, 754 households comprising 3,164 people were accommodated at 16 temporary sites in the district.
Karongi District Vice Mayor for Social Affairs Pascasie Umuhoza said local authorities had continued supporting affected families after the disasters claimed lives, destroyed crops and left residents without safe accommodation.
“We suffered severe losses when disasters struck in May 2023. People lost their lives and crops were destroyed. Afterwards, we tried to remain close to the affected families. The affected houses were placed in six categories. Some had collapsed completely and were rebuilt from the ground up, while others were repaired,” Umuhoza said.
She urged residents to build only in designated settlement areas and use materials capable of withstanding severe weather.
“We encourage residents to build in areas designated for settlement and to use durable materials that will prevent their houses from collapsing. They should also pay attention to their roofs and properly channel rainwater to prevent damage,” she said.
Umuhoza also called on homeowners to install lightning conductors because Karongi is among the districts exposed to lightning strikes.
“We also experience disasters caused by lightning. We therefore encourage anyone building a house to ensure that it has a lightning conductor,” she added.
Across the districts affected by the 2023 disasters, 135 people died and 111 were injured. A total of 2,740 houses were destroyed, another 3,223 were partially damaged and nearly 5,000 homes required relocation from high-risk areas.
The wider housing programme has constructed or rehabilitated 5,096 homes, providing safer accommodation for more than 25,480 people. Some families had been living in government-funded rental accommodation while their permanent houses were being completed.
Speaking during earlier handovers under the same programme, Emergency Management Minister Maj. Gen. (Rtd) Albert Murasira said the houses should demonstrate how homes can be built to withstand disasters.
“These houses should serve as an example to the wider population on building resilient, disaster-safe homes,” Murasira said.
The Karongi handover took place during a rainy season forecast to bring above-average rainfall to several parts of Rwanda.
Authorities have urged residents to clear drainage channels, reinforce vulnerable structures, manage rainwater and relocate from high-risk areas before disasters occur.
Elie GATETE
RADIOTV10