Rwanda spends $ 13 million on importing wheat every year

{Rwanda spends $ 13 million on importing wheat every year which is a burden to the country comparing to the surface wheat is cultivated on.
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90% of wheat produce that are used in making bread and other things is imported because even the small quantity that reach the market is rejected due to bad quality.

In a three days meeting that took place in Kigali from 27 to 30 September, Association for Strengthening Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA) focused on how to increase wheat yield per hectare in two countries Rwanda and Burundi.

The project will be implemented in the pilot phase of two years from 2015 to 2017.

In the eastern African countries Rwanda is third in producing wheat after Kenya and Tanzania.

Dr.Ivan Rwomushana, Program Manager -Staple Crops under ASARECA institution said “ in Burundi and Rwanda are still harvesting in traditional way which bring sand in their wheat and at the market of industry the wheat be rejected and countries continue to import them.”

Ivan added that with ASARECA farmers will be trained, given fertilizers, good seeds in order not to be given cheap price on the market.

Innocent Habarurema, the head of wheat program in Rwanda Agricultural Board said that where farmers are few in planting wheat the project will help them to increase their number and where people were liking to plant it , they will increase more.

He said” last year we have trained 150 farmers on how weeding wheat because in their mind they thought that weeding wheat is time loosing but with sensilization they will also go and train others in their region.”

Rwanda grows wheat on 75 hectare and one hectare gives two ton only. In 30 districts 11 districts grows wheat.

Famers in Rwanda get Rwf 200 and Rwf 250 per kilogram which is not marching with the investment of farmers.

tombola@igihe.com