For this effort to succeed, the Government of Rwanda and FAO encourage all partners to come together and work hand-in-hand like never before. No business-as-usual solution will be effective: only true collaboration and coordination across sectors and organizations will support the shift needed to move from degraded landscapes towards sustainably productive ones.

Acting now for tomorrow: Rwanda at a crossroad

Agriculture has driven Rwanda’s impressive growth over the past years and remains a key player in the country’s economy today. Largely due to this successful transformation, poverty has dramatically declined and food security and nutrition have significantly improved over the past 20 years.

Yet Rwanda is facing serious challenges, many of which threaten the long-term productive potential of agriculture in the country. The “land of a thousand hills” is the second most densely populated country in sub-Saharan Africa and it experiences a very high population growth rate. Rising population and income, and related changes in food habits, are resulting in an ever-growing demand for food.

Evidence is accumulating on severe erosion, serious loss of soil fertility, and decline in water quantity and quality in the country – and soil and water are two of the most critical natural resources on which agriculture depends. In addition, climate change is already exerting significant negative pressure on the country’s agriculture.

With a degraded and ever scarcer natural resource base, feeding Rwanda’s growing population will be a huge challenge in the near future. Opportunities to reverse the trend and sustainably intensify agricultural production need to be seized immediately.

Restoring and improving productivity of 2 million hectares

Rwanda has committed to restoring 2 million hectares of degraded land by 2020 as its pledge for the Bonn Challenge, a global commitment to restore 150 million hectares of degraded land by 2020. FAO is supporting this effort through the Sustainable Food and Agriculture (SFA) and Forest and Landscape Restoration (FLR) programme, focusing on establishing connections across agriculture and natural resources.

Through that support, the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) and the Ministry of Natural Resources (MINIRENA) of Rwanda organized a workshop aimed at building modalities for a coordinated action across the agriculture and natural resources sectors, in collaboration with FAO, IUCN, WRI, and the Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation, in June 2015.

Following that workshop, a cross-sectoral taskforce was institutionalized to foster improved collaboration across agriculture and natural resources. This taskforce assembles stakeholders from MINAGRI and MINIRENA, as well as other ministries, agencies and development partners with a leading role in the restoration and sustainable management of lands. FAO facilitates the taskforce, and supports laying the ground for a large-scale effort across the country.

FAO supports an integrated approach

FAO has been tasked by the taskforce to move forward on six critical components to lay the ground for a successful transition towards restored and productive landscapes in Rwanda.

1. Catalyze cross-sectoral coordination through improved mechanisms of collaboration and advocacy. At central level, FAO facilitates the cross-sectoral taskforce, a cornerstone in defining new ways of collaboration on issues cutting across agriculture and natural resources. At District level, work will focus on integrated landscape management and land use planning to which cross-sectoral and multi-stakeholder collaboration are critical. In addition, FAO will play an advocacy role by supporting the identification of success stories to highlight the importance and benefits of past experiences of restoration and sustainable land management projects.
2. Enable restoration and sustainable management of agricultural landscapes by adapting the policy environment. As evidenced through the Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology (ROAM) assessment undertaken by the Rwanda Natural Resources Authority (RNRA) with the support of IUCN and WRI, agroforestry has the potential to restore more than one million hectares across the country. Agroforestry therefore requires both sectors to adopt a coordinated and harmonized approach. FAO will support policy efforts required to enhance coordination across agriculture and natural resources sectors, promoting synergies and avoiding gaps and conflicts, in particular for agroforestry.
3. Strengthen the capacities of communities and technical staff at catchment, sector and district level to support the restoration and sustainable management of agricultural landscapes. In close partnership with the National Capacity Building Secretariat of Rwanda, the Kitabi College of Conservation and Environmental Management, Wageningen Centre for Development and Innovation and IUFRO, FAO is supporting the development of adapted training curricula.
4. Leverage finance for the restoration and sustainable management of agricultural landscapes. Large scale restoration and sustainable land management requires important investments from all sources, including private sector. To facilitate private sector engagement, FAO is currently focusing on value chains of interest in the model district of Rulindo, to identify potential public and private opportunities that could support their development, and act as incentives to farmers for upscaling sustainable land and agroecosystems management best practices.
5. Empower local stakeholders are empowered to restore and sustainably manage landscapes in a pilot site of the model district of Rulindo and identify best practices for replication in other districts. The district of Rulindo has agreed to be a model to test and showcase the benefits of integrated approaches. Building on past successes of FAO’s Kagera Transboundary Agroecosystem Management Project, activities will take place in the catchment of Butare with the support of Vi-Agroforestry, a Swedish NGO. Support will be aimed at structuring new FFS and developing their capacities to produce more while adopting more sustainable practices, at strengthening existing FFS, and at identifying ways to efficiently upscale good practices beyond the area of intervention.
6. Monitor impact of sustainable agriculture in restored landscapes.

Coordinated approach is key

For this effort to succeed, the Government of Rwanda and FAO encourage all partners to come together and work hand-in-hand like never before. No business-as-usual solution will be effective: only true collaboration and coordination across sectors and organizations will support the shift needed to move from degraded landscapes towards sustainably productive ones.

Faustine Zoveda (FAO)