March 17, 2014
Well structured farmer organizations in Rwanda, support of the government to smallholder farmers and use of relevant agronomic practices may see the country achieve the green revolution ahead of other countries in Africa.
"This is one of the best value chain approaches that have ever been witnessed in Africa, supporting farmers from the lower cadre, where leaders have kept off membership of the cooperatives" said Ann Mbaabu, the Director for Markets at AGRA.
"Farmer groups in this country are working in very well coordinated cooperatives, which are financing them, training them on good agronomic practices, while linking them to better markets. Those are positive steps towards a green revolution we want," she said during an AGRA sponsored farmers forum held in Murama sector, Ngoma district in Eastern Province of Rwanda.
The Green Revolution concept started in the Asian countries in the 1960s, and involved a change in the pattern of crop production and intensive use of chemical inputs such as inorganic fertilisers to boost the yields, making several Asian countries food secure. To date, they export their produce especially rice and wheat to many other countries in the world.
In Africa, AGRA is working with smallholder farmers to help them produce enough to feed themselves, and have some for the market as part of the journey towards the green revolution on the continent.
AGRA, in collaboration with the Government of Sweden has invested over $5 million in Rwanda to improve agricultural productivity, scale up market access, support breeding of new crop varieties, offer scholarships at the Masters and PhD levels, support private seed companies, and support agro-dealers to distribute the seeds to the farmers.
"By using fertilizers and manure and applying relevant agronomic practices we have improved our yields of maize from less than one ton per hectare to 4.5 metric tons," said Mukasonga Mediatrice, a member of Ejo Heza Cooperative in Nyagatare district in Eastern Rwanda.
The country's agricultural policies are largely focusing on agricultural intensification and access to markets for smallholder farmers.
"We have achieved so much through cooperatives in this country," said Rwibasira Eugene, the Executive Secretary for the Rwanda Development organization (RDO), which is one of the two AGRA's implementing partners in Rwanda.
"It is through such organizations that farmers can now access loans from banks, sell their produce collectively for a better price, and most importantly, they have moved from subsistence to commercial farming," he said.
So far, AGRA is supporting a total of 214 farmer cooperatives in eight districts in Rwanda through the RDO, and Rwanda Rural Rehabilitation Initiative (RWARRI).
The achievements of the cooperatives in Rwanda were clearly demonstrated during the 2013 Farmer Organization of the Year Awards, where Rwandan cooperatives took most of the awards, led by the IMPABARUTA Farmers Cooperative which took the African Farmer of the year award.
"I congratulate the government of Rwanda for being at the forefront in supporting smallholder farmer organizations indiscriminately all over the country," said Mbaabu
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