Farmers Hit by Poor Road Network

                                                                  
Farmers in Mitooma are bearing the brunt of the poor road network following the destruction of various bridges by torrential rains in the district in August last year. The rains washed away bridges connecting Mitooma to Ntungamo, Rukungiri, Kanungu and Democratic Republic of Congo.
 
As a result, farmers erected temporarily bridges to help them cross Kenzobu, Kashaha, Kyanyongwijo and Kabukyera swamps in order to access the nearest produce markets. Charity Mutungi, the Mitooma district production secretary says residents in the area majorly depend on agriculture for their survival.
 
Mutungi says that many farmers are stuck with their produce because of the destruction of major bridges. He says that in addition to failure to market their produce, farmers in the area have failed to send back their children to school due to lack of funds.  
 
//Cue in: “am afraid Mitooma is currently…..//
Cue out…as the produces still at home.//
 
Robert Muhwezi Kyatuka, a coffee farmer in Mutara Sub County says that the coffee prices have considerably reduced since the bridges were washed away.
 
//Cue in: “These days we have got a problem….
Cue out.....and sell our coffee.//
 
Francis Asiimwe Katsyomezo, Mitooma district Vice LC V chairman is worried that if it continues raining many lives could be lost because of the using the makeshift bridges.

//Cue in: “One of the major problem people……
Cue in….affected local revenue collection seriously.//
 
Katsyomezo says that the destruction of the bridges has caused a big loss to the district in terms of local revenue collection forcing the authorities to abandon monitoring and co-funding of key programs such as Naads. He says that they been collecting shillings 142 million as local revenue but since disaster struck the district they were able to collect only 69 million shillings.

 He says that as a result of the poor local revenue collection, they were forced to suspend the construction of the district administration block.