EU and FAO Supporting Rwanda to design 6 year Agriculture Transformation plan

Agriculture remains the backbone of Rwanda’s economy, contributing approximately 33% to Rwanda’s GDP (NISR/GDP-Second Quarter 2016) and employing 72 % of the labor force while government’s budget allocation currently stands at close to 10.01 percent in 2015 of its total budget.  PSTA4 will come on the heels of the PSTA-III whose period ends in 2017/18 financial year. 

Experts observe that the fact that Rwanda has a very young labor force, agricultural diversity will be crucial to create non-farm jobs.

The minister of agriculture and animal resources, Geraldine Mukeshimana stressed that PSTA4 should open doors for more job opportunities in the sector.

 “The agriculture transformation must be seen in the context of rural transformation by unlocking the potential of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), through job creation. The challenge for PSTA 4 is to put the right package together for citizens to choose the right path for them, whether Agricultural or non-Agricultural”, Minister Mukeshimana noted

Johan Cauwenbergh, Head of Cooperation at EU said it was crucial that Agriculture positions itself correctly in the context of government’s over-arching goals – EDPRS III and SDGs.

“The development of vibrant agro-dealer networks was the first necessary step. It was clear that the government cannot remain an implementer as it is today, but must become an enabler”, he noted.

PSTA4 will cover the period from 2018-2023 and will look to boost the sector’s performance.

The new agricultural strategy being designed with the technical support from FAO will be structured around four core pillars: ‘Productivity, commercialization, nutrition and food security’, ‘Resilience & sustainability’, ‘Inclusive employment & farmers’ skills’ and ‘Effective enabling environment & responsive institutions’.

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