Grace has a way of smiling  upon those who dare behold it. Felicien Munyamfura was one grassed up pedal cyclist earning a measly Rwf1,000 per day until he decided to dream beyond the immediate horizons of his life.

When a friend lent Munyamfura Rwf90,000, he bought a sorghum crashing machine. His business was on a roll and soon the sweating moments pedalling passengers were behind him, serving only to spur him on.

The success of the sorghum machine saw Munyamfura acquire a Rwf450,000 loan. This time, he went bigger and better with a maize milling machine. 

Today, he is the only one who runs a maize mill in Kinigi Sector, Musanze District. 

"When I was a cyclist, I earned Rwf1,000 on a good day. This meant sometimes my family would eat only one meal a day. Today, we can afford two meals every day,” he said. "From proceeds from this maize mill, I have rehabilitated my house, which was on the verge of collapse.” 

Munyamfura’s dream to own a maize mill was inspired by the introduction of the land consolidation programme in 2008, during which maize was chosen as one of the major crops suitable to be grown in the district.  

The programme seeks to bring together fragmented plots of land and encourage the cultivation of particular crops on the consolidated land to maintain food security.

Maize boom

In Kinigi, farmers who spoke to this paper said hunger has been eliminated, thanks to the hybrid maize brand which they rotate with Irish potatoes. 

Theogene Turikumwe, a farmer in the sector, said they started growing maize after realising that the Irish potato yields were not good enough and the seeds were too expensive for the average farmer. 

The sentiment was echoed by Marie Nyiranshuti, another farmer in the sector, who said with the new maize variety, they are sure of bumper harvests. 

Despite knowing the value of maize flour, a grain mill was not readily available, forcing many to move long distances or do with other foodstuff. So it was when Munyamfura started a grain mill, the locals beamed with smiles. 

"If there was no maize produce, I don’t think I would have started this business and no doubt the community needed maize milling machine since the only place they got the service was in Musanze town,” Munyamfura said. 

Business, he said,  took off immediately. And spurred on by his success, he is looking forward to acquiring more milling machines to satisfy the increasing customer demand.  

He receives about 200 clients per day. So far, he has assets worth Rwf2,000,000 that he has accumulated in less than a year.

Munyamfura employs four workers.