Improving agricultural productivity

25 min

Case: how far to the targets?

PSTA 5 sets yield targets for Rwanda's priority crops to reach by 2028–29: maize from 1.7 to 2.74 tonnes per hectare, beans from 0.6 to 1.1, Irish potatoes from 8.2 to 14.7 and rice from 4.0 to 5.4 (MINAGRI, PSTA 5, p. 21). The chart compares them with the yields measured in Season A 2026 (NISR, SAS, Table 6).

Think: one season into the plan, maize's Season A yield has covered more than a quarter of the distance, but rice and potatoes only about a tenth. What could explain the difference, and which measures would close the gap fastest? (Caution: this does not compare like with like. PSTA 5's baselines and targets are yields for whole years, with 2023 as the baseline, while the markers show Season A only, the season in which most maize is grown; and one season's yield can be raised or lowered by the weather. So this is an early indication, not a measure of progress.)

Definition

Yield gap: the difference between the yield farmers actually achieve and the yield that is attainable in the same place with the best available seed, inputs and practices.

Post-harvest loss: the part of a harvest that is lost or spoiled between harvest and consumption, during drying, storage, transport and processing.

Worked example 1: the growth rate a target needs

The maize target is 2.74 t/ha in 2028–29 from 1.7 t/ha in 2023, about 6 years. What average annual growth in yield does that require? Repeat for rice (4.0 to 5.4).

\text{maize: } \left(\frac{2.74}{1.7}\right)^{\frac{1}{6}} - 1 = 1.6118^{\frac{1}{6}} - 1 = 0.083 = 8.3\% \text{ a year}

\text{rice: } \left(\frac{5.4}{4.0}\right)^{\frac{1}{6}} - 1 = 1.35^{\frac{1}{6}} - 1 = 0.051 = 5.1\% \text{ a year}

During PSTA 4, agricultural value added grew by 3.1% a year (PSTA 5, p. 8). Yield growth of 5–8% a year, kept up for six years, would therefore be far faster than the recent past: a demanding target.

Ways of improving agricultural productivity

Measure	How it raises productivity	Rwanda: where things stand
Improved seed and breeds	Higher-yielding, disease-resistant varieties	37.0% of farmers used improved seed in Season A 2026 (NISR, SAS)
Soil fertility	Fertiliser, manure, compost and lime on acid soils	Fertiliser target: 70.3 to 94.6 kg/ha by 2028–29 (PSTA 5, p. 22)
Irrigation and water harvesting	Removes dependence on rain; allows a third season	Irrigated land doubled to 71,585 ha during PSTA 4 (PSTA 5, p. 8); 14.4% of farmers irrigate
Soil and water conservation	Terraces, contour hedges and agroforestry stop topsoil washing away	Radical terraces to rise from 142,318 to 167,268 ha (PSTA 5, p. 21)
Land management	Consolidated blocks, Food Basket Sites and AgriHubs allow scale	Food Basket Sites planned on 324,702 ha (PSTA 5, p. 21)
Extension and training	Spreads better practices quickly	Extension agents: 16,654 to 21,620 (PSTA 5, p. 30)
Finance and insurance	Lets farmers buy inputs and survive bad seasons	The national agriculture insurance scheme to be scaled up (PSTA 5, p. 17)
Post-harvest handling	Drying, storage and cold chains keep more of the harvest	A PSTA 5 priority area (p. 14)
Markets and roads	Better prices make investment in the farm worthwhile	Feeder roads and market links concentrated at AgriHubs and Food Basket Sites (p. 18)
Pest and disease control	Protects yields, as banana wilt and bean diseases showed	Plant health management, PSTA 5 Outcome 1.1 (p. 14)
Climate information	Planting at the right time; choosing suitable crops	Farmers receiving weather information: 20% to 65% (PSTA 5, p. 21)
Crop–livestock integration	Manure feeds the soil; animals add income	Livestock as a productive asset for poor households (Unit 5, lesson 4)

Worked example

Worked example 2: is storage worth it? (illustrative figures)

A cooperative harvests 50 tonnes of beans. Sold at once, they fetch Frw 600 a kg. Stored for four months in a hermetic store, they fetch Frw 800 a kg, but storage costs Frw 40 a kg and 2% of the beans are lost. Without the store, 10% would have been lost to pests and damp before sale. Compare the two choices.

\text{sell now (10\% lost): } 50\,000 \times 0.90 \times 600 = 27\,000\,000 \text{ francs}

\text{store (2\% lost): } 50\,000 \times 0.98 \times 800 = 39\,200\,000

\text{minus storage: } 39\,200\,000 - 50\,000 \times 40 = 37\,200\,000 \text{ francs}

Storage earns 10.2 million francs more: lower losses and a better price later in the season. It also evens out the bumper-harvest price fall of lesson 3.

Judging strategies: food security, jobs and sustainability

Strategy	Food security	Jobs	Sustainability
Fertiliser and improved seed	Raises output quickly	Little change	Risk of soil and water pollution if overused
Tractors and large machines	Timely planting raises output	Can cut farm jobs	Fuel use; soil compaction on slopes
Irrigation	Stable output, a third season	Creates jobs in every season	Must not drain wetlands or overuse water
Terracing and agroforestry	Protects future yields	Labour-intensive work, often paid	Strongly positive
Commercial specialisation	Higher incomes, but less home food and more risk	Jobs in processing and trade	Monoculture can spread disease
Storage and processing	Less waste, food all year	Off-farm jobs: PSTA 5 targets 644,000 by 2028–29 (p. 20)	Less land needed for the same food

Warning

More output is not automatically more food security. Food security needs food to be available, accessible (affordable), well used (nutritious, safe) and stable over time. A rise in maize output does little for a family that cannot afford it, or for a child's diet if beans and vegetables give way to a single cash crop.

Tip

For any "evaluate" question on farming policy, use the three tests from the key competence: does it improve food security, create jobs and keep growth sustainable? Then add one Rwandan figure for each test.

Important

Discuss. Rice and Irish potato yields in Season A 2026 were only about a tenth of the way to their PSTA 5 targets. If you advised MINAGRI, which three measures from the table would you put first for these two crops, and why?

ISRIC – World Soil Information, "Land, Soil and Crop Information Hub in Rwanda" (2026). How soil and crop data are being put into farmers' and advisers' hands. Note which productivity measures from the table in this lesson the hub supports.

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Practice

Define yield gap and post-harvest loss.
Explain six ways of improving agricultural productivity in Rwanda.
A crop's yield must rise from 0.6 to 1.1 t/ha in 6 years. Calculate the average annual growth rate needed.
Using the progress chart, which crop was furthest towards its target in Season A 2026? Give one reason why a single season may mislead.
Forty tonnes of maize sell now at Frw 300 a kg with 8% lost, or after storage at Frw 400 a kg with 1% lost and a storage cost of Frw 30 a kg. Which is better, and by how much?
Explain how terracing contributes to food security, jobs and sustainability.
Explain the four dimensions of food security.
"Raising agricultural productivity is the key to reducing poverty in Rwanda." Evaluate.

Show answersHide answers

Yield gap: the difference between actual yields and those attainable locally with the best seed, inputs and practices. Post-harvest loss: harvest lost or spoiled between harvest and consumption.
Any six explained, with examples from the table: improved seed; soil fertility; irrigation; soil conservation; land management; extension; finance and insurance; post-harvest handling; markets and roads; pest control; climate information; crop–livestock integration.
$\left(\frac{1.1}{0.6}\right)^{\frac{1}{6}} - 1 = 1.833^{\frac{1}{6}} - 1 = 0.106$ , about 10.6% a year.
Maize (about 28% of the way). One season's yield depends on rainfall, pests and disease that year, and PSTA 5's baselines and targets are for whole years, so it may not show the trend.
Now: $40\,000 \times 0.92 \times 300 = 11\,040\,000$ . Store: $40\,000 \times 0.99 \times 400 - 40\,000 \times 30 = 15\,840\,000 - 1\,200\,000 = 14\,640\,000$ . Storage is better by 3,600,000 francs.
Food security: protects soil and future yields; jobs: digging terraces is labour-intensive (often paid public works); sustainability: cuts erosion and keeps fertility on slopes.
Availability (enough food produced or imported); access (people can afford or obtain it); utilisation (safe, nutritious, well used); stability (all of these at all times, through bad seasons).
For: most poor households farm, so higher yields raise their incomes and food supply; cheaper food helps poor buyers; productivity releases labour for other jobs. Against: tiny holdings cap farm incomes; inelastic demand means higher output can lower prices; landless households gain little directly; jobs outside farming, social protection and education also matter. Judgement: necessary but not sufficient.

1Case: how far to the targets?

2Ways of improving agricultural productivity

3Judging strategies: food security, jobs and sustainability

Case: how far to the targets?

Ways of improving agricultural productivity

Judging strategies: food security, jobs and sustainability