‘Modern farming practices the way to go’

The farmers and agribusiness professionals agreed that modern technology is the way to get the best out Rwanda’s arable land. (file photo)

Stakeholders in the agricultural sector have gathered at The Office, a co-working space in Kiyovu, to take part in an agri-business forum. The forum was aimed at promoting different agriculture based businesses and enable networking, and it showed the importance of the country’s most constructive sector.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCCu3UR-x7A&feature=player_detailpage#t=98
Jacob Emmanuel of White Onion farm, talked about the importance of monoculture and permaculture types of farming in a country like Rwanda: “Monoculture is expensive and destructive especially on Rwanda’s terrain, but it’s the best way of achieving good quality agricultural products,” he said.
The forum also emphasized the importance of training farmers on how best to acquire startup capital, something that has hindered many of them from purchasing the right agricultural tools and expanding their businesses.
Steve Johns of FAIM Africa, the first and only tissue culture lab and propagation nursery of its kind in Africa, noted that for Rwanda’s produce to compete with the rest of Africa, it should ensure production of quality, virus free plants and embrace modern farming techniques like the tissue culture.
“Tissue culture gives predictable, assured results at the right timing of the highest quality,” said Johns. “With tissue-based farming, farmers are assured of quality produce in a shorter period of time,” he added. Through tissue culture, the company projects to bring in $10 million of revenue within the next four years, thus a profit of $4.5 million in the same time.
The farmers and agribusiness professionals agreed that modern technology is the way to get the best out Rwanda’s arable land.