Rwanda’s tea is known for its high quality and is among the best in the world and it is a record that has been sustained for long, but much can be done to even improve this quality and make the most of it.
This was said by President Paul Kagame during his visit at Rugabano Tea Factory located in Karongi District which he visited on Sunday, August 28 on his final leg of his four-day tour of the Southern and Western provinces.
Rugabano is the country’s second biggest tea buyer.
Kagame said that the factory is important to the country because it employs many people who get money to sustain their families, while investors also get profit and pay taxes.
"The quality and impact of Rwanda’s tea stand out. The quality of our tea is among the best not just in the region but across the world. This is an opportunity to exploit and we have all it takes to maintain quality and derive more benefits to the people of Rwanda,” said President Kagame.
Kagame pledged to have necessary infrastructure in place to facilitate an increase in tea yield.
Tea was introduced in Rwanda in the 1950’s. By June 2021, there were over 26,000 hectares of tea plantations in the country. Tea production has increased steadily, from 5,910 tonnes of black tea in 1980, to 12,855 metric tonnes in 1990 to 36,000 metric tonnes in 2021 where it generated export revenues worth US$103 million
The growth of the tea sector is catalyzed by investors who, in addition to grow tea under industrial blocks, are helping farmers to expand tea areas well as its processing.
The Rugabano tea plant is run through a firm by Wood Foundation, a venture philanthropic organisation.
According to Knopp David, the Wood Foundation Africa Director; "Less than six years ago, none of this was here; there was no commercial firming going on. In 2017 along with several partners, we embarked on a long journey to transform the region in Greenfield development in tea. To date, we are looking at yielding 74 percent high-quality leafs in Rwanda which is currently the best in the country.”
David said it is the company’s duty to maintain quality coming from Rwanda.
Meanwhile, as investors speak highly of Rwandan tea, farmers have equally drawn strategies of how they can make a fortune from the investment.
Byusa Abubacar has a ten-hectare land and is one of the best earners from tea farming. According to him, farmers deep down in the hills of Karongi District have started to financially connect with the international community.
"Having quality tea comes from an art that we deployed in cultivating. When the factory we supply makes good profits, they call us and give us a bonus. There is accountability in the whole process and that’s how we connect with the world; how we cultivate results to the benefits we get,” he said.
Rugabano Tea Factory was established in 2019 as a result of an agreement between the Government of Rwanda and Luxmi Tea Company Private Limited – a subsidiary of Wood Foundation.
The firm later changed to Silverback Company Limited and embarked on developing tea greenfield in Karongi in collaboration with Rugabano Outgrowers’ Scheme, to increase tea production in the area.
In his address, Rudra Chatterjee, the Chairman Rugabano Tea Factory said that the company he represents has invested $12 million and has committed to invest up to $40 million.