WESTERN PROVINCE

KIBUYE — With the loud voices of men singing cheerful songs, boats approach Ruganda landing site from Congo. The singers claim these songs are morale boosters for if they don’t sing; they would get very exhausted because of the long distance they travel on loaded boats.

As they draw closer, one gets a clear view of bananas on board, the common goods they supply to Rwanda. When they dock, the Congolese are more than willing to provide what they have come to supply in the foreign country.

Indeed most people in Kibuye avoid buying any foodstuff from local traders in anticipation of buying cheaper and at times better supplies from the Congolese every Friday.

"Food is scarce in Kibuye, rather than buying a small bunch of banana at Frw2000, I would rather wait for Friday to buy a bigger bunch at Frw1700,”said Nsengiyumva Vincent a resident of the town.

At Ruganda market, the Congolese are always in a hurry to sell their goods and go back to look for more. And they avoid spending a lot of time bargaining. Many Congolese women selling oranges and yams call out to potential buyers in broken Kinyarwanda.

"Business with Rwanda is the best because we have never gone back empty handed,” said Tumbaine, a Congolese woman.

Rwandans engaged in this business have no complaints. Many who started from petty businesses with the Congolese have managed to prosper.

"I started buying oranges worth Frw1000 on Fridays to get Frw300 in profits, but now I load a Fuso truck of bananas which I send to Kigali every Friday,” said Ndayishimiye.

From oranges he shifted to yams and from yams to bananas. He explained that his secret to success  was batter trade. The Congolese involved in the trade prefer exchanging goods rather than cash.

This has helped many Rwandans without financial capital to take part in the business It is rare to find a Rwandan without at least one domestic animal.

"At first I exchanged my one and only goat for five bunches of bananas which I sold in the Kibuye market and got a profit of more than Frw4000,” said one Kaligirwa who now owns a kiosk.

She continued with the banana business until she got enough money to start dealing in other merchandise. As for the Congolese they have nothing to worry about other than getting domestic animals from Rwanda.

"We have all the food we need but our culture loves meat naturally,” said Ombene Mustafa, one of the banana traders.

He brings an average of 40 bunches and goes away with a variety of goods in exchange including pigs, goats and at times hens.

One bird can earn one a bunch of bananas yet a well fed goat can earn a Rwandan four bunches of bananas. Pigs, the best selling animals can attract seven or even ten bunches of bananas.

On Fridays many Fuso trucks from Kigali pack in Ruganda to buy bananas at a fair price. Whole sale purchase attracts a price discount of about 10% for a single bunch.

However, Congolese complain of their animals dying on the way home; "Especially the pigs die because people who load them on the boats beat them up, and if a pig is beaten up it can never survive,” said Ombene.

By the time the Market closes in the evening, Rwandans are contented not only with the apparently profitable business but also the petty jobs of loading the animals onto the boats.

"Every Friday I get at least Frw 500 for loading animals onto the boats for the Bashi [Congolese],”said Fisto Uwiragiye.

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