Rwanda is yet to replicate Japan’s way of raising revenues in respective districts, a team of experts from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will assist in the implementation of the program known as One Village One Product (OVOP).
The program will enhance entrepreneurship by supporting business activities within a community then later the revenues would be used to support developmental activities in the same area.
Implementation of Rwanda OVOP program will begin with 4 target districts which are Huye, Musanze, Nyagatare and Rubavu. It will expand countrywide and around 5000 business groups are to be nurtured through the program by 2014, impacting on poverty reduction through increased volume of export products and development of small and medium scale industries.
“This is not a new concept it was first implemented in Japan over two decades ago and became and its success was mostly seen in economy growth,” said Kunio Hantanaka, Japan ambassador in Rwanda.
Moreover, the program is expected to contribute the private sector-led economy set as one of the pillars in Vision 2020, through boosting local based business, creating employment and generating exports. It is designed as a practical, operational, sustainable and self assessing scheme providing capitalization and accumulation of economic advantages and business development services to empower communities through systematic nurturing of business initiatives and activities.
As a result, there will be a reduction of the country’s deficit which is staggering at Rwf 1 billion; this will be achieved through formation of Small and Medium Enterprises. OVOP Program in Rwanda has three key pillars which justify its suitability to the Rwandan context: Focus on value addition for products and services; streamlining of business extension services and branding of certified and unique quality.
“These SME’s are a vital engine to our socio economic progress,” said PSF, Chief Executive Officer Roger Munyampenda adding that, “we’re trying to promote a strong SME sector in order to increase employment at the same time widen our tax base.”
He however remarked that among the challenges of sustaining the SME’S was due to lack of credit access. In this respect the PSF established a Business Development Fund (BDF) which totals to Rwf 8.4 Billion,” he remarked.
OVOP is a regional development program originated in Oita prefecture, Japan in the early 1980s. A village produces value-added products made from local materials for both domestic and global markets. JICA assists many developing countries to adopt the program to boost local business.
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