Horizon Sopyrwa Ltd, a Rwandan subsidiary company of Horizon Group, and its business partner, Endura SpA, an Italian chemical company, played an important role at the 3rd International Conference on "How to fight poverty with Low Carbon Projects in Less Developed Countries”, held in Milan (Italy) last month.

The conference was organized by Federchimica (Italian Chemical Industry Association) and facilitated by numerous speakers, drew participants from industrial companies, NGOs, Investment Funds and other institutions such as the Italian Agency for International Cooperation and Development, a department of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

Horizon Sopyrwa is one of the leading worldwide producers and processors of Natural Pyrethrum from which insecticides are produced for use in households, vector control, agriculture and pharmaceuticals.

Since 1937, Natural Pyrethrum has been extracted from the pyrethrum daisy, which is widely grown in the area of Musanze, involving around 37,000 farmers.

The Government of Rwanda strongly supports growing and processing of pyrethrum which, along with the production of coffee and tea, represent a significant income for the local communities and contribute to Rwandan export to the USA and Europe, as well as many other countries.

During the 3rd International Conference and in the frame of the European Sustainability Program for Developing Countries, Federchimica, Endura and Horizon Sopyrwa signed an important cooperation agreement with the aim of adding value along the entire supply chain of Natural Pyrethrum extract, with significant benefits for the farmers involved in the cultivation of pyrethrum daisy.

An additional opportunity is presented by the Carbon Credits market that could deliver financial benefits. In this respect, the Italian company Carbon Sink Srl, specialized in Carbon Credits projects and with a successful experience in other African countries, and the University of Florence have been involved for the purpose of achieving this promising project.

Representatives from the said companies and institutions recently met with the Board Members of Horizon Group in Kigali and visited several farmers in the Musanze.

Mr. Eugene Haguma, CEO of Horizon Group, commented on the event highlighting that; "Horizon Group and Horizon Sopyrwa are highly committed to contributing to the sustainable development of Rwanda. The international partnership with Endura will open new opportunities in this direction”.

The Endura CEO, Cosimo Franco, also Chairman of the Conference and President of the Responsible Care Program Committee at Federchimica was also optimistic that sharing experiences with Horizon Sopyrwa will yield mutual benefits. "We strongly believe in the partnership with Horizon Sopyrwa since we share the same long-term vision. We are not looking for a short-term business relationship, but rather a sustainable business for the benefit of both companies. I do hope that this collaboration at a company level is the bridge towards strengthening relations between Rwanda and Italy,” he said.

Mr. Sergio Treichler, Central Scientific-Technical Director at Federchimica, stated: "We at Federchimica are very proud because thanks to this Conference, we have been able to contribute to creating business opportunities between Italy and Rwanda as well as contributing to Sustainability in Developing Countries”.

For more information: www.federchimica.it

Press Contacts

Horizon Group Limited; Blue Star House,Boulevard de L’UmugandaPostal Code: P.O.Box 6129City: Kacyiru, KigaliCountry: RwandaPhone: (+250) 252 581 221email: info@horizongroup.rw