Export crops production expanded by 35 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, making it the top performing component of Rwanda’s agricultural sector. This underscores the industry’s growing role in foreign exchange earnings.

According to the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), the agriculture sector contributed 15 per cent to the country’s economy GDP in the Q3 of 2025.

Within agriculture, food crops production went up by 4 per cent. Livestock grew by 6 pr cent, fishing increased by 34 per cent, while export crops production rose by 35 per cent, NISR indicated.

This growth reflects coordinated interventions across production, infrastructure, quality assurance, and market access led by the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB), responsible for the promotion and growth of the country’s agri-exports.

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Public-private partnerships have also boosted output. Memoranda of Understanding covering about 7,000 hectares have attracted private investment in coffee production in both traditional and emerging growing areas, with new plantations already contributing output in districts such as Burera, Gakenke, and Nyagatare.

Strengthening infrastructure and export readiness

To meet international quality and food safety standards, NAEB expanded export-enabling infrastructure. Packhouse capacity increased from 30 to 50 tonnes per day and was equipped with a product scanner to cut airport clearance times. An advanced laboratory was also established to ensure quality compliance and safety of agricultural and livestock exports.

Ruth Iranzi, from Proxifresh, a horticultural exporting company, told The New Times that NAEB’s packhouse plays a critical role in export preparation.

"NAEB provides modern infrastructure that meets international standards, particularly for sorting, packaging, and quality control. This enables us to ensure that products shipped to external markets meet clients’ requirements in terms of quality, traceability, and presentation,” she said.

Cold-chain logistics have expanded through private investment, with refrigerated trucks increasing from two in 2017 to 28 by 2025. Clear avocado maturity and handling guidelines aligned with international standards have further boosted buyer confidence and export revenues.

Iranzi said that speed and reliability are essential for perishables, adding that NAEB’s support in packaging, cooling, and shipping "allows us to deliver products of consistent quality within the expected timelines.”

"For international clients, this builds confidence because they know the products arrive in good condition and through reliable processes. This consistency is a key factor in maintaining long-term business relationships, even in a sometimes fluctuating market environment,” she observed.

In coffee, NAEB facilitated the establishment of new washing stations in high-production zones, improving access to processing facilities and enhancing quality and volumes.

Expanding markets and promoting Rwandan produce

NAEB has intensified market diversification, expanding horticultural exports to the Middle East, India, and China. Export protocols with China for chilli, avocado, macadamia, and honey have reduced reliance on traditional markets. Exporters have also been supported to participate in international trade fairs.

"Participating in international trade fairs and exhibitions allows us to promote Rwandan products, meet new clients, and better understand evolving international market demands. It also provides an opportunity to engage with other industry players, strengthen Rwanda’s visibility as a credible exporting country, and identify new medium- and long-term business opportunities,” Iranzi said.

Branding initiatives such as the Best of Rwanda National Specialty Coffee Competition – known as the Best of Rwanda – have reinforced Rwanda’s premium positioning.

Nova Coffee, a Gicumbi-based firm, won the inaugural competition in 2024. Its owner Agnes Mukamushinja said the recognition boosted visibility and sales.

"Our efforts to ensure quality along the entire value chain are paying off,” she said.

By October 2025, Mukamushinja said Nova Coffee’s sales had already grown by about one-third compared to the previous year, with an 80 per cent increase projected by year-end.

Logistics efficiency has also improved through the introduction of sea freight using Controlled Atmosphere Containers to Europe and Dubai, cutting freight costs and improving exporter margins. Regular market analysis and transparent farm-gate pricing have encouraged reinvestment and adoption of good agricultural practices.

Expanding production and building resilience

NAEB has led the expansion of land under high-value export crops—tea, coffee, avocado, and macadamia—aligned with export diversification priorities.

Over the past two planting seasons, coffee rejuvenation covered 2,145 hectares, 8.5 million tea seedlings were distributed, and 730 hectares of horticulture orchards were developed. These efforts were reinforced by the rollout of the climate-resilient, high-yielding RAB C15 coffee variety, which is resistant to rust and coffee berry disease.

Jean Nepomucene Rwagatore, an avocado farmer in Rwamagana District, said NAEB support—including seedlings, organic fertiliser, and agronomic follow-up—enabled him to shift from subsistence crops to a long-term, high-value export enterprise.

He said NAEB provided him with fertilizer and avocado seedlings he planted on his farm late 2023.

"This gives me confidence in future yields,” he said.

Similarly, Methuselah Sibomana, a coffee farmer in Huye District, said interventions under the Promoting Smallholder Agro-Export Competitiveness (PSAC) – implemented under NAEB – project helped replace ageing (which are more than 30 years old), unproductive trees with high-yielding variety seedlings.

Under such initative, he said, he received free seedlings, organic fertiliser, and a Rwf425 incentive per new seedling planted.

He indicated that he planted 1,200 coffee seedlings in 2024/2025, adding that 700 seedlings more were planned for 2025–2026 to further replace old coffee trees.

"I could not harvest even 300 kilogrammes per year from more than 1,200 old coffee trees. However, once the new coffee trees start producing, I expect yields to increase by four or five times,” he said.

The country’s export earnings rose from $515.8 million in 2017 to more than $893 million in 2024/25, according to NAEB. Building on this momentum, the second phase of the National Strategy for Transformation NST2) targets $1.54 billion in agricultural export revenues by 2029.