Born in a peasant family in 1951, Felicien Semarembo, never had a chance to see a blackboard nor did he get a chance to live with his parents growing up.

From a peasant farmer, few believed that the illiterate man who lives at the foothills  of Virunga Mountain could become a role model and inspire many farmers in and around Musanze District.

He narrates that food, shelter and clothing came as a luxury  and not a right, something Semarembo says inspired him to become what he is today.

From one acre just a few years ago, he now boosts of 10 acres of land and has gone on to live up to his dream of becoming a model farmer in his area.

His woes of toiling to make his dream come true have left him with a lesson about the importance of liberation towards economic development, he says.

Semarembo believes peace, security and stability have been fundamental ingredients driving the sector’s growth and as well as liberating him from poverty.

He is in fact convinced that without liberation, Rwandan farmers would never have seen their lives change to what it is today.

Semarembo’s journey in the agricultural sector

In the late 1980s, he decided to seek knowledge on how  he could make use of the only piece of land left to him by his late parents.

"The land was less than an acre and could only grow one crop per season which made it even more difficult to feed my family and set aside some for the market,” he narrated.

 The situation was compounded by the instabilities the country was going through, making farmers helpless

"First I looked at agriculture as a source food and knew that for as long as I cultivated, l was assured of life,” Semarembo continued to explain.

 "As I struggled to improve my life just like many farmers were doing, came the horrors of the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi making the situation worse”.

Semarembo added that many farmers fled the country, agriculture was among the sectors that paid the ultimate price.

Return of stability

"However, after the Genocide, upon the getting back the stability we had before, farming was normalised; it was actually the peace brought to us by RPF liberators that empowered farmers like me,” he said.

In 2000 Semarembo reached out to Urugaga Farmers Union where he secured Rwf200,000 to boost his farming.

"This was the turning point in my day-to-day farming activities and it has been critical throughout my journey of modern farming. Increasing my productivity meant increased household income and ultimately reducing poverty,” he noted.

The 65-year-old farmer started by growing beans and later expanded to maize and Irish potatoes.

Semarembo produces more than 80 tonnes of Irish potatoes, 10 tonnes of beans and 5 tonnes of maize per season.

He has also planted more than 10,000 eucalyptus trees and rears six Friesian cows on the same land.

"On a good season I earn about Rwf10 million per season that I invest in training farmers and increasing productivity.”

He says he was never wrong to continue farming even when there was no hope.

"I was very sure that with stability, things would eventually become better for those in the agricultural sector.

For instance, between 2007 and 2008, I was among those trained by agronomists in modern farming thus enhancing my expertise and skills in farming,” Semarembo explained”

It is indeed the same skills that he is using at his field farming school which he established three years ago.

"I was able to understand, the importance of modern farming towards poverty reduction and economic development and thus took up the campaign to spread the gospel, he says.

He established a modern farming field school right in the foot hills of Virunga ranges and has so far trained more than 400 farmers.

 "I train them and later provide them with the right inputs before dispatching them to go and train others,” he said.

In fact as we visited his farm, many had come for the morning lessons.

 And as result of his work, the farmer has been awarded certificates from all corners including, government institutions and development partners.

Challenges

Despite a seemingly bright path, the re-known model farmer says receiving inputs such as seeds and fertilisers have been and remain a big challenge. This delay affects productivity and obviously profits, he says.

"The government should also work with banks to ensure we access credit on time, because farming cannot wait. It is done on time and, therefore, requires everything to be timely, he advised.

Green house technology 

Semarembo, has constructed a green house where he teaches farmers how to grow Irish potatoes in a controlled environment.

His five sons have all graduated as agronomists, thanks to agriculture; the farmer has been able to raise school fees and other necessities to support his family.

The farmer employs more than 50 workers on his farm and plans to increase the number as he expands his acreage.

According to Semarembo, it is very critical that Rwandans understand the importance of peace and stability towards economic development

"I was here when the country was being torn apart, when we had nothing to eat, nowhere to hide; no farmer would risk to go out to farm, that was the situation; however, all this is now history, thanks to the liberators,” he said.

Agriculture is now thriving and employing more Rwandans because there is stability, says Semarembo.

What the farmer thinks of 2017

He said he would walk from Burera to Kigali to convince President Paul Kagame to stand for another term if the leadership in Kigali fails to do so.

"Look how far I have come, who thought that a peasant like me would earn Rwf10 million from the soil? This is why we want him back so that peace and stability can prevail.”

Future plans

The 64-year-old dreams of constructing a seed laboratory facility to help farmers increase production and be able to contribute to the national economic growth

"By embracing modern technology, farmers can benefit from agriculture” he pointed out.