At least 10 public pig slaughterhouses are being constructed across the country so as to ensure safety of pork consumers, Doing Business has learnt.

The investment comes at the time pork demand is rising in Rwanda.

Solange Uwituze, the Deputy Director General in charge of Animal Resources Research and Technology Transfer at Rwanda Agricultural and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB) said that Rwf1.4 billion has been invested in constructing the public pig slaughter houses in the Districts of Ruhango, Huye, Nyamagabe , Nyamasheke, Karongi, Rutsiro, Musanze, Burera, Gicumbi and Rulindo.

"The slaughter houses will be working as collection centres where the pork will be produced and supplied to other areas of the country,” she said.

According to statistics from RAB, Rwanda has a population of 1.38 million pigs.

A pig with her piglets at Kigeme refugee camp. Pig rearing is changing young mothers’ lives in Kigeme refugee camp. Photo: Lydia Atieno

The country produces an estimated 23,000 tonnes of pork per year as of 2019.

The Rwanda Livestock Master Plan targets to more than double pig meat production to 67,076 tonnes by 2022.

"The public slaughter houses will help pig farmers to increase market by selling pigs at better prices. The collection centres will also help to eliminate middlemen that were putting farmers into losses,” she explained.

Uwituze said that the investment will drive shifting from farm gate sales of live animals to value addition through processed pork meat.

"The abattoirs will help solve the issue of poor quality of pork that is caused by lack of standard slaughterhouses across the country. Pigs were usually being slaughtered in the bushes and other substandard places. Now the standard abattoirs being constructed will ensure sanity, address risks and food safety related issues and in enforcement of sanitary regulations” she noted.

Cooperatives to manage public slaughter houses

According to Uwituze, there is a need for more investors in establishing modern pig slaughterhouses as the relatively young sector is growing as pork gains popularity.

"The sector organization needs to be reinvigorated to be attractive for investors,” he said.

A pig farm in Rwamagana District.According to statistics from RAB, Rwanda has a population of 1.38 million pigs.The country produces an estimated 23,000 tonnes of pork per year as of 2019. Photo: File.

She said mobilisation of cooperatives to embrace the management of planned slaughter houses is also set to be conducted to modernise and standardise pig slaughtering.

"There is a need to support farmers’ cooperatives and associations and organisations to better mobilise different players in the pig sector for a better coordination of the sector. Relatively young sector needs strong organization,” she said.

The strong organisation is needed, she said, because fraudulent and illegal slaughtering of pigs in rural areas and unfair competition among pig slaughtering players are posing threats.

 She noted that the meat regulatory and legislative framework needs to be reviewed to cover slaughtering of small livestock highlighting that this is based on the fact that there are market related issues.

"Household consumption level remains small because pork is consumed mainly in restaurants, bars and hotels while others consume processed pig meat,” she said.

The official said that pig abattoirs are among the government priorities during the next five years as well as other priority infrastructures for small livestock namely pig, sheep, goat and poultry.

At least 10 public pig slaughterhouses are being constructed across the country. Photo: File.

 "With government support, the target is to establish at least 10 improved pig slaughterhouses across the country,” Uwituze said.

 She disclosed that there are also two big and modern slaughterhouses and processing plants for pigs planned for by 2023.

 Currently there are pig abattoirs in Kicukiro District in Nyarugunga Sector, Bugesera in Mayange Sector, Gakenke and Nyamagabe Districts while other less modern slaughterhouses are located in Rubavu , Musanze and Gisagara.

 Jean Claude Shirimpumu, a pig farmer and chairperson of the Rwanda Pig Farmers’ Association reiterated that lack of modern slaughterhouses affects market access to pig farmers.

 "Most of pigs are slaughtered in hidden places and therefore there is a need for official modern slaughterhouses. This can also reduce the threat to health of consumers,” he said, adding that pig farmers have no sustainable market due to middlemen that are exploiting them.

 He added, "Modern abattoirs could attract better prices. We need small slaughterhouses scaled up and decentralized across the country at sector and cell levels so that pig farmers get markets nearby,” he noted.

 Jeanne Niyonsenga, a pig farmer, said that prices for pigs and animal feeds that are so expensive are the major challenges that also need to be addressed.

 "Lack of modern abattoirs across the country for pigs was still lowering value to pigs. This attracts poor prices for pigs yet animal feed prices keep increasing,” she said

In order to address high prices of animal feed the government is set to launch a Rwf2.5 billion new financing scheme to lower interest rates for pig and poultry farmers as well as animal feed producers in need of bank loans.

The new scheme has been designed to reduce interest rates on loans to as low as 8 per cent.