Broke, I left for Kigali, now I export veggies

Crop rotation

"We grow habanero chilies, sweet peppers, English cucumbers, sweet melons and cherry tomatoes. On another section of the farm, we practice open farming where we do crop rotation for potatoes, cabbages and French beans," says Macharia, who also doubles as a farm manager.

With time, the business grew and he expanded to exporting to European markets.

After Sunripe stabilised, together with Dutch national Norbert Van der Straten, they formed Holland Greentech, which supplies the farm and others outside Rwanda with inputs, technology and equipment.

"After careful research, we noticed a market gap and filled it. We created products that fit in," says Macharia.

So far, the company has provided jobs for 300 young people, with 20 being permanent and the rest hired based on demand.

Being an export firm, they are constantly updating their technology to meet international standards for quality.

"We use greenhouses because they help us to keep our products safe from pests and to meet other export standards that are strict on pesticide use," he says.

Climate change has affected rainfall patterns and to address that they have installed rainwater harvesting technology in their greenhouses and invested in a sand dam to store water.

Business in Rwanda

One of the reasons why horticultural farming thrives in Rwanda he says is because of an ideal climate, fertile soils and a youthful and hardworking labour force. Rwanda's economy remains predominantly dependent on agriculture, with nearly 90 per cent of rural households involved in small-scale farming on small pieces of land according to the World Food Programme.

Diplomatic guests

Though things are looking up, he admits that challenges are there.
Irregular rainfall, drought, floods, pests and disease attacks, together with limited land for agriculture are some of the challenges that farmers like him face.

But all is not lost.

"Here the government has taken up large blocks of land and supports farmers to farm. It provides subsidised inputs including fertiliser and other incentives and farmers have been organised into cooperatives for stronger bargaining power when accessing markets. The cooperatives have also helped fix the issue of exploitation from middlemen," says Macharia.
He also believes that greenhouse farming provides his farm with a buffer against the effects of climate change which has seen the region experience longer and instense seasons of drought.

"We ship out 600 kgs of chilies, 500 kgs of peppers and 1,000 kgs of onions every so often. In January we harvested 3,000 tonnes of sweet pepper. We harvest twice a week for like six before the next cycle," he says.

His story and business model is so impressive it has attracted the eye of diplomats and other influential figures.

In February this year, Kenya's acting High Commissioner to Rwanda Philip Githiora paid the farm a courtesy call.

"It was exciting to see our ambassador taking time off and visit us. We have also hosted American and Dutch ambassadors," he says.

In future, he plans to set up a similar establishment in Kenya.

"I have plans to establish greenhouse farming to help my community achieve food security".