Farmers block Burundi’s RN I to demand fertiliser
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Iwacu
Farmers in Nyamirambo, in Matongo commune, Burundi, blocked the RN I to protest the incomplete delivery of prepaid fertiliser. They are demanding the promised quantities or a refund; police fired into the air to disperse the protesters, according to local sources cited by Iwacu.
Farmers from Nyamirambo blocked the RN I national road in Matongo commune to demand fertiliser they say they had prepaid for. Police fired into the air to disperse the protesters in the late afternoon, according to local sources cited by Iwacu.
The farmers say each was due to receive 16 kg of fertiliser, but local authorities proposed that a 25 kg bag be shared between two farmers, or 12.5 kg each. They demanded delivery of the promised quantity or a refund for tickets not fulfilled during the 2026 B growing season.
Matongo commune administrator Janvière Kanyana said the situation had been resolved. The storage shed serves five hills, or about 6,000 households. After checks, a significant quantity of fertiliser was found there, but the stock manager did not know what was available at the time of distribution, she explained. The lack of information contributed to the protest.
The ministry responsible for agriculture recommended refunding farmers whose tickets were not fulfilled for the 2026 B season. It also urged producers to pay for Fomi Imbura fertiliser and lime for the 2027 A growing season.
