Rwanda's flower export volumes have gradually declined between 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 fiscal year, following the Russia-Ukraine war, two of the main buyers on the Aalsmeer Flower Auction in Amsterdam, Netherlands, where Rwanda’s flowers are sold.
This is according to statistics from the National Agricultural Export Board (NAEB).
In the 2022/2023 fiscal year, Rwanda exported a total volume of 845,848 kilogrammes of flowers down from 1,130,243 kilogrammes in 2021/2022 FY, a 25 per cent decrease.
According to Jean Bosco Mulindi, Emerging Commodities Division Manager at NAEB, the 2023/2024 fiscal year saw a further decline in flower export volumes.
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In the 2023/2024 fiscal year, the total volume of flower exports stood at 381,933 kilogrammes, a 54.9 per cent decrease from the previous year.
Mulindi attributed the decline to the on-going Russia-Ukraine war.
"We export almost 80 per cent of our flowers to Europe via the Amsterdam auction and from that auction, Russia and Ukraine are the main buyers. But the war has greatly disrupted this," he said.
With this disruption, Mulindi said that Rwanda is eyeing alternative markets, while leveraging the United Kingdom suspension of export tariffs on cut flowers originating from East Africa.
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On April 11, this year, the United Kingdom announced temporary suspension of export tariffs on flowers originating from East Africa up to June 30, 2026, greatly benefiting flower growing countries in the region including Rwanda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda and Tanzania.
The decline in flower export volumes notwithstanding, total revenues from horticulture exports significantly increased in the 2023/2024 fiscal year.
"In 2023/2024 fiscal year, total horticulture (vegetables, fruits and flowers) revenue was USD 79.2 million up from USD 58 million in 2022/2023 fiscal year, buoyed by large export volumes of vegetables and fruits in this period,” Mulindi said.
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Vegetable export volumes increased from 51.7 million kilogrammes in the 2022/2023 fiscal year to 63.3 million kilogrammes in 2023/2024 fiscal year while fruit export volumes increased from 22 million kilogrammes to 38 million kilogrammes in the same period.
According to Mulindi, this performance was driven by among other things, exploration of new export markets, an increase in the number of exporters as well as improved quality and quantity of fruit and vegetable production.
Total horticulture revenues are projected to increase by 5 per cent by the end of 2024.