Rwanda’s agricultural policy is implemented through the Strategic Plan for the Transformation of Agriculture, now in its third phase (PSTA3 2013-17). At the core of PSTA3 is a set of four strategic programmes, namely (i) agriculture and animal resource intensification, (ii) research and technology transfer, advisory services and professionalization of farmers, (iii) value chain development and private sector investment and (iv) institutional development and agricultural cross-cutting issues.

Public investments focused on improving food crop production through input subsidies and irrigation. Maize, wheat, rice, Irish potato, beans and cassava received substantial support, being priority crops in the government’s flagship Crop Intensification Program (CIP). A high share of public expenditure went to seed and fertilizer provision under the CIP and to the construction of off-farm irrigation schemes. High levels of spending on inputs and irrigation are consistent with the objectives of the first programme of the PSTA3. However, few interventions targeted value chain development beyond the farm gate, a main objective of the third programme of the PSTA3.

Producers of food crops have overall received price incentives over the last decade. For rice and wheat growers, this mainly resulted from border protection (import tariffs), trade barriers and high internal demand. However, a large share of domestic rice and wheat consumption is still met through imports. Local producers would benefit more from growing demand if they could supply markets with products that match urban consumers’ tastes. More attention should be directed towards processing, packaging and advertising in order to create demand-pulls. The same holds for beans: despite efforts on enhancing productivity, the value chain remains largely informal with limited room for seize cross-border trade opportunities. 

To support cash crops (mainly coffee and tea), it is key to revise producer price-setting schemes and give farmers access to better on-farm services to accelerate growth in export volumes and revenues. Export prices for both coffee and tea increased since 2005, as Rwanda became recognized and praised for the quality of its products. However, producers of both cash crops have been receiving prices lower than the equivalent price in the region, in the recent years. Floor producer prices set by public authorities were thus presumably too low. The coffee pricing mechanism has been reformed in 2017, and tea should follow shortly. Effects of these recent changes should be closely monitored.

Agriculture policy coherence can be improved in this context. Price incentives can only lead to output growth when producers can easily access markets and when local products are competitive with respect to commodities that are traded internationally. In this perspective, scaling up budget for processing, storage and marketing facilities seems fundamental in order to deliver on the PSTA objectives and, ultimately, to allow Rwandan farmers diversify into higher-value crop production. Furthermore, the capacity of public agencies to monitor and analyse productivity and market trends should be further expanded, to exploit comparative advantages and build up agribusinesses. For instance, the use of floor prices should be backed up by evidence and regularly assessed.

Download the report "Analysis of public expenditure in support of food and agriculture in Rwanda 2011/12-2015/16".

For additional information on the indicators shown in the graphs and the terminology used, please refer to MAFAP’s Glossary on Public Expenditure and Methodological Guidelines - Volume II - Public Expenditure. For detailed information on the data provided, please go to the MAFAP database.