Rwanda’s agricultural exports revenues surge 45 pct

Rwanda recorded a 45 percent increase in revenues from agricultural exports in the fiscal year 2021-2022 compared to the previous fiscal year owing to economic recovery measures, said the government agency in charge of export promotion Monday.

The East African country registered 640.9 million U.S. dollars in the fiscal year 2021-2022, up from 444.8 million U.S. dollars in the previous year, the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) said in a statement.

“Export revenues from traditional exports including coffee, tea and pyrethrum increased by 18 percent to 185.4 million U.S. dollars in the fiscal year 2021-2022 while non-traditional export commodities increased by 58 percent to 455.5 million U.S. dollars in the fiscal year 2021-2022,” it said.

Coffee export revenues increased by 23 percent, tea increased by 15 percent and pyrethrum increased by 12 percent, according to NAEB.

It, however, said flower export quantities and revenues have decreased 5 percent and 13 percent, respectively, as a result of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, both of which are major importers of flowers.

“We are pleased that in addition to other opportunities the agro-export sector contributes significantly to job retention and creation. We will build on this year’s strong performance by looking for new and innovative ways to keep Rwanda’s agro-business environment adaptable and competitive while drawing in the interest of the international market,” said Claude Bizimana, chief executive of the NAEB, in the statement.