Guarantee fund officials have asked residents of Ndego sector in Kayonza district to write a letter demanding compensation over their property destroyed by animals in Akagera National Park.
The officials revealed this during the meeting that gathered residents of Ndego sector and Akagera park administration on November 20th 2012.
Guarantee fund is subsidiary of Rwanda Development Fund (RDF) which manages several credit guarantee funds.
Guarantee fund is a facility put in place by the Rwandan government as an instrument to boost investment in different sectors. The aim of this guarantee is to promote financing to viable rural projects without enough collateral or regarded risky by banks.
Theogene Semugisha, civil registrar in Ndego sector revealed that compensation money has been available for two past months.
“Elephants destroyed crops, wounded some residents and killed others. These residents will be compensated of all the destruction ever since 2002,” Semugisha highlights.
Though residents are set to receive compensation, animals are still escaping and destroying more property.
An example is how elephants escaped from the Akagera national park on November 16th 2012 and wondered in Isangano and Karambi cells in Ndego sector.
However, the elephants did not harm any human being but ate up residents crops.
Residents are celebrating over compensation but suggest the park’s fence be rebuilt and strengthened to prevent the problem.