Farming is the mainstay of the majority of Rwandans and agricultural products make up a substantial part of the country’s exports. The transition from traditional agricultural practice to modern farming has been slow even though the government has invested a lot into the sector. But even though, that is not enough. The Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), a pan-African flagship programme to enhance agriculture production and bring about food security, recommends that African countries invest a minimum of 10 per cent of national budgets into agriculture. But in the current budget, the government has only managed to allocate agriculture only 4.4 per cent. Most of that will go towards irrigation, research and extension services, as well as agriculture and livestock insurance. Most rural farmers will not understand all the intricacies involved in the agricultural sector. They will not know the amounts invested to protect them from climate change. All they understand is putting food on the table and taking their surplus produce to the market. So it is surprising to learn that farmers are not consulted when setting prices. As long as there is still a long way to go to meet the CAADP, recommendations, a lot needs to be done to win the farmers’ confidence by involving them in every step; if there is a shortage of fertilizers, they should be told the reasons. They should be given a basic course in demand and supply; that when there is a glut in production, prices will fall. But when they are not involved in crucial things such as setting prices, they will end up blaming their local leaders when things go bad. So farmers need to be accompanied and involved in decision-making so that they feel they are part of the team and not simply following orders from outsiders who do not understand the sweat that went into the farm.
