Agriculture experts call for more investment in Irish potato production

The private sector has been urged to invest in Irish potatoes so as to address the shortage and help prevent price fluctuations. In a three-day workshop that brought together academicians, experts from the Ministry of Agriculture and farmers at Ruhenge High Learning Institution INES, it was decided that measures should be taken to limit the shortage. The workshop ended yesterday. Last year, between July and November, the price of Irish potatoes skyrocketed to Rwf300 per kilogramme before drastically falling to Rwf80, leaving farmers counting losses The price fluctuation was attributed to unfavourable weather patterns and lack of storage facilities. Other causes identified are inadequate seeds for planting and shortage of seed multipliers. The farmers are not efficiently using fertilisers which affects their yields, the participants said. Francois Nsengiyumva, the Board chairperson of the Post Harvest and Storage Taskforce at the Ministry of Agriculture, urged the private sector to invest in storage facilities. He said prices will stabilise once the produce is well stored. Rwanda Agriculture Board will work with universities and individual researchers to multiply Irish potato seeds so that farmers use high quality seeds, he said. “The supply is inadequate due to high demand but this should not be seen as a threat but rather an advantage for farmers. Farmers need to join cooperatives and use modern methods to boost their production,” Nsengiyumva said. Universities such as INES Ruhengeri and UR– College of Agriculture, Animal Sciences & Veterinary Medicine (Former ISAE) have expressed interest to do more research on how to multiply improved seeds. Currently INES is multiplying seeds sold to residents and carrying out research on soil types to help residents cultivate on favourable soils. Isaac Nzabarinda, one of the seed multipliers, said he was ready to provide more seeds to farmers. He says it takes him six months to have over 300,000 seeds from his greenhouse and he is committed to multiplying that. Northern and Western Provinces have fertile soils around Volcanoes National Park which are favourable for Irish potato growing.