Agriculture in Rwanda
Senior 4 · Geography
Agriculture in Rwanda
Lesson 3 of 5
25 min
Figure 3 shows how many farmers used modern inputs in the main season of three recent years.
Figure 3. Share of farmers using modern inputs in Season A, 2022–2024. Drawn by Ganzaa from NISR's Seasonal Agricultural Survey 2024.
Fertiliser use rose sharply, from 38.6% to 64.5% of farmers in two years. Over the same seasons maize production rose from 348,907 to 507,985 tonnes (NISR). How much of that came from more land, and how much from better farming? Worked example 1 answers it.
Definition
Horticulture: the intensive growing of vegetables, fruits, nuts and flowers. Market gardening: intensive growing of vegetables and fruits close to towns for daily sale.
Agricultural modernisation: raising output per hectare and per worker through improved seeds, fertilisers, irrigation, mechanisation, better land management, research and access to markets.
Land use consolidation: neighbouring farmers grow the same priority crop on adjoining plots so that inputs, advice and machines can be used together, while each keeps ownership of their land.
In 2022, 50.8% of private households practised horticulture (NISR, 2023, Table 81). NAEB notes that horticulture is found in all 30 districts and covers four groups of produce: vegetables, fruits, nuts and flowers.
| Season (2024) | Vegetable area harvested (ha) | Vegetable production (t) | Yield (t/ha) |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 18,322 | 145,933 | 8.0 |
| B | 19,842 | 177,549 | 8.9 |
| C | 5,738 | 65,980 | 11.5 |
Source: NISR, SAS 2024. Yields are highest in Season C, when vegetables are grown on irrigated marshlands.
Factors favouring horticulture (NAEB): a favourable climate with high, medium and low altitude zones; fertile soils; abundant water; plentiful labour; growing urban markets; government support such as a 50% subsidy on small-scale irrigation equipment, cold-chain facilities and negotiated air-freight rates. Exports include processed goods such as pineapple juice, dried pineapple, mango and passion-fruit juice and tomato paste, sold to Burundi, the DR Congo, South Sudan, the EU and the US.
Market gardening is intensive farming of vegetables on small plots near towns, especially Kigali, using manure, watering and quick crops (amaranth, cabbage, tomatoes, onions) sold fresh in daily markets.
Worked example 1: more land or better farming?
Data (SAS 2024, Season A). Maize: 348,907 t from 218,689 ha harvested in 2022; 507,985 t from 249,276 ha in 2024. Since production = area × yield, the logarithms add:
Interpretation. About two-thirds of the rise in maize came from higher yields (1.6 to 2.0 t/ha), the period when fertiliser use rose from 38.6% to 64.5% of farmers; one-third came from more land. Note that weather also varies between seasons, so not all the yield gain can be credited to inputs.
| Obstacle | Evidence | Ways to raise output |
|---|---|---|
| Small, fragmented plots on steep hills | About 0.6 ha of agricultural land per farm household | Land consolidation; terraces; cooperatives |
| Dependence on rain | Only 7.5% of farmers irrigated in Season A 2024 | Small-scale and hillside irrigation; water harvesting; valley dams |
| Uneven input use | Improved seed: 39.7% of farmers in Season A but 18% in Season B (2024) | Subsidies (SNS), seed multiplication, extension |
| Climate shocks | Droughts in the east; floods and landslides in the west | Climate-smart farming, drought-tolerant crops, insurance |
| Post-harvest losses and weak markets | Poor storage and drying; distant markets | Storage, drying floors, cold rooms, feeder roads, processing |
| Limited capital and credit | Smallholders cannot afford machines and inputs | Savings groups, cooperative banks, credit schemes |
| Soil erosion and declining fertility | Cultivation of steep slopes | Terraces (90.6% of farmers use anti-erosion measures), agroforestry, manure |
Warning
Check the season. Input use in Rwanda differs greatly between Seasons A, B and C (improved seeds 39.7%, 18% and 18.8% of farmers in 2024; irrigation 7.5%, 12.1% and 58.2%). A figure without its season can mislead.
FAO: "Small-scale irrigation: reducing poverty and hunger in Rwanda". How small irrigation schemes let farmers grow more in the dry season. Link what you see to the obstacles table.
Practice
Key points
Sources and credits
Sources: Seasonal Agricultural Survey: Annual Report 2024, NISR (input use, maize and vegetable production, irrigation, anti-erosion); Fifth Rwanda Population and Housing Census, 2022: Main Indicators Report, NISR, 2023 (horticulture households); About Rwanda Fresh, NAEB (horticulture conditions, exports and incentives); Rwanda's agriculture sector transformation over the last 32 years, MINAGRI, 8 July 2026 (CIP, consolidation, SNS, irrigation targets, post-harvest investment).
Figure 3 and the worked example were drawn and written by Ganzaa.
Photo: Imboga zitandukanye, Camilopiz, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Video: "Small - Scale Irrigation - Reducing poverty and Hunger in Rwanda", Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, embedded from YouTube. The rest of the lesson and the exercises were written by Ganzaa.
Quick check
Between Season A 2022 and 2024, what share of farmers used inorganic fertiliser by 2024?
