Investing in Horticulture in Rwanda (HortInvest) project has concluded its interventions in supporting Rwanda’s horticulture sector, marking a next step for tens of thousands of its beneficiaries.

Since December 2017, the HortInvest, a project funded by the Netherlands Embassy in Rwanda, has been geared at strengthening the country's horticultural value chain, from the fruits and vegetable farms to the harvest management and the export trade.

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Its components were: production for domestic and regional markets; food and nutrition security improvement; strengthening supply chains for export markets; and improved enabling environment for horticulture.

The $16.6 million project has benefited 45,000 smallholder farmers (106 per cent the initial target) in six districts in western Rwanda: Muhanga, Karongi, Rutsiro, Rubavu, Nyabihu and Ngororero.

68 per cent of the beneficiaries doubled their production of vegetables, while 40% doubled production of fruits.

HortInvest supported 50 companies that contribute about 40 per cent of overall horticulture exports of Rwanda. They helped them establish linkages with the farmers and cooperatives for sourcing of the fruits and vegetables and also to acquire machinery and needed infrastructure in the horticulture export sector, such as pack houses.

At an event organised to share the project’s five-year journey on Friday, December 9, stakeholders commended the project’s impact on the Rwandan economy.

Eleanor Hartzell, the country director of SNV, the Netherlands Development Organisation, welcomed the participants and stated that the HortInvest project has contributed to the overall development of the horticulture sector in Rwanda and supported the government’s overall strategy towards food security and agriculture sector transformation.

"We supported the HortInvest project because we believe in a stronger horticultural sector in Rwanda, both for the purpose of improving food security and the prospects of exports to the Rwandan economy,” Matthijs Wolters, the Netherlands Ambassador in Rwanda, said.

He added that the beneficiaries would continue to do business independently after the project has concluded.

"The way the project was put together means that the farmers were capacitated to not only grow their agricultural products but also to become entrepreneurs on the market and that will help them for the future to continue by themselves.”

Implemented by the SNV as the lead partner, and Sustainable Trade Initiative IDH, Wageningen University and Research, Agriterra, and Holland Greentech, HortInvest supported over 300 farmers’ cooperatives and built six selling points in different districts and over 150 women traders were benefited.

"In most situations, a lot of things happen while the project is there, and when it ends, the impact cannot be seen. For us, we have been concerned about this issue all along,” said GB Banjara, HortInvest project manager.

"We have trained cooperatives so that they shall continue providing services to the farmers. We have made sure that the farmers continue to supply their production to the local markets and exporters and because both the local consumption and the Rwandan export volumes are rising, this relationship will continue.”

Jasper Spikker, speaking on behalf of the project partners, stated that the HortInvest project will have its footprint not only in Rwanda, but also in various other countries on the continent, as the learnings have been shared with horticulture practitioners in various other countries.

Claude Bizimana, CEO the National Agricultural Export Development Board recognized the project’s achievements through a strong partnership between the Government of Rwanda and the development community, especially the Embassy of the Kingdom of Netherlands and acknowledged the contribution of the project to the long-term strategic direction of the country and the enabling pathways to achieve its ambition in the development of the agriculture sector.

The beneficiaries of HortInvest said they were ready to continue business after the project ended.

"HortInvest supported us in capacity building in terms of harvest management, and they helped us to acquire solar-powered irrigation pumps,” Jean d’Amour Ntamabyariro, the president of a farmers’ cooperative specialising in vegetables in Muhanga District, said.

"Yes, the project has ended, but for us farmers it has just started because it’s time to show that the activities we carried out with support from the HortInvest project have been sustainable in nature. And we will continue to utilise the skills and capacities we have gained for the last five years.”

Elvis Rwema, the CEO of Best In Rwanda Group, an horticulture export company, said: "HortInvest enabled us to work with some 2,000 farmers across the country and to train them on the best practices in farming, and we got important equipment that will help us to keep exporting fresh produce, even after the project. The farmers will remain assured of the market for the production.”