Korean agro firm to set plant in Kigali

The Ministry of Agriculture’s plan to modernise agriculture through mechanisation has received a technological boost from the South Korean agricultural equipment supplier Tongyang Mooisan LTD. The ministry has announced that it is in the process of mechanising agriculture in order to increase farm output, as the sector moves towards using powered machinery instead of men. The programme is set to kick off in September this year. According to the Minister of Agriculture, Agnes Kalibata, the ministry entered an agreement with Tongyang Mooisan LTD, a Korean based agricultural machinery supplier, in April this year. “We are confident that this company will be able to supply our needs. They have promised to offer trainings for our people on all supplied machines.” The contract states that the Korean firm will supply up to 100 tractors, 100 trailers, 1034 sowing equipments, 1000 iron wheels, 140 potato harvesters and 10 combine harvesters. “These machines will be assembled here and sold to the farmers; we are working on a payment program with banks and micro finance institutions to make it easier for farmers to access the machines. Tongyang Mooisan LTD has promised to set up a plant here which will help in trainings, machine assembly and machine sale not just for Rwanda but the whole region as well,” Kalibata said. The Ministry will be sending six staff members to Korea for training in June. The trainees will be at the forefront during the implementation of the mechanisation project. “We have already made seeds and fertilizers available for farmers and now we want to introduce mechanized farming. With machines we will be able to reduce the farmers’ burden and reduce their cost of production,” she said. Kalibata noted that currently the country is food sufficient and there is need to take production to the marketing level. “Farmers are labour constrained and hence are unable to utilize the window of opportunity in between seasons. The machines will make the farming process easier and faster and hence the farmers will be in good time for planting during this window.” Ends