KIGALI - Rwanda’s desire to become a regional centre for technological innovation has received a boost after a group of Japanese experts in turning banana leaves into textile materials, pledged to train Rwandans on how to exploit the popular crop beyond food and manure.

The ten-member team from Tama Art University,Tokyo are visiting the country to assess how the banana crop can be exploited beyond just making food and manure for which it is popularly in the country.

The process of turning banana leaves into textiles was developed by Tama Art University which specializes in design and textile techinolgy.

According to Koichi Hagiwara, the Industrial Development Officer from the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) this project was unveiled during the Tokyo International Cooperation and Development Summit in May this year.

He is also part of the delegation in Rwanda.
Hagiwara added that President Paul Kagame who attended the summit was impressed by the technology and expressed his desire to have the university team develop it in Rwanda since she produces a large number of bananas.

The team also held a one-day working seminal at Kigali institute of Science and Technology where 40 stake-holders in the banana industry were trained on how to turn banana leaves into cloth.

Professor Kyoko Hashimoto who led the delegate from Tama Art University said that her university was the first to develop this technology and Rwanda would be among the first countries to benefit from it.

Hagiwara said that even if the technology was developed in Japan, his country does not produce bananas. He added that they intended to export the technology to countries that grow the crop.

"The Lake Victoria Basin in which Rwanda is located produces over 14 billion tons of bananas annually and most of the crop is wasted,” he said.

He added that the team was here to awaken the people in the region to use the banana waste and that Tama Art University will also receive and train Rwandans on the technical aspects of turning banana leaves into textiles.

Professor Romain Murenzi, the Minister in the President’s office charged with Science and Technology said that this scheme would bolster government in its desire of imparting technical skills among its citizens.

So far, government has only been using banana wastes in its bio-diversity programmes.

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