Featured: Raising The Village boosts agricultural sustainability in Ngororero, Nyabihu districts

Ngororero, Rwanda — Raising The Village (RTV), an international non-profit organization, has launched new projects focusing on empowering subsistence farmers in Ngororero and Nyabihu districts through sustainable agricultural practices and essential infrastructure. The initiative, launched this week across three project sites, is targeting over 11,400 community members and marks the beginning of a government-led implementation model, with RTV providing technical oversight. Focusing on community-driven development, RTV’s approach aims to raise household incomes from less than $0.75 to over $2 per day within 24 months. The program promotes agricultural productivity, introduces income-generating opportunities, and enhances food security through close collaboration with local authorities. “We’re helping farmers transition from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture,” said Justine Mbabazi, RTV’s Country Manager. “Our goal is to support them in increasing their harvests even from small plots of land.” Speaking at the official launch of the Akagari Cluster Program (ACP) in Kageyo Sector, Ngororero District, Mbabazi emphasized that the project is also active in Nyabihu District and includes a strong emphasis on environmental resilience. One of the key components of the program is training farmers to produce and use liquid manure, an eco-friendly and affordable organic fertilizer. “Liquid manure is made from inexpensive, locally available materials like urine, animal waste, and ash. It is stored for just 14 days and acts as both a fertilizer and an organic pesticide,” Mbabazi explained. “It’s a cost-effective solution that directly addresses environmental challenges facing the region.” The program also promotes improved nutrition by distributing eight types of high-yield vegetable seed varieties, which is particularly timely for Ngororero, where there is growing need to improve household nutrition and food security. Additionally, RTV is addressing hygiene and sanitation issues by improving access to clean water. “We are supporting households with productive seeds to fight malnutrition, while also improving hygiene by expanding access to clean water,” Mbabazi added. The Mayor of Ngororero District, Christophe Nkusi, commended RTV’s contribution to the region's development, noting that most residents rely heavily on agriculture as their primary source of income. “These initiatives are significantly supporting our people to improve their livelihoods,” Nkusi stated. “Raising The Village is making a meaningful contribution to the agriculture sector—helping farmers increase their yields while addressing the broader challenges we face.” As part of the launch of the ACP, agricultural tools such as hoes, sprayers, watering cans, and improved seed varieties of short-cycle crops, vegetables, and perennial crops were distributed to farmers. RTV also inaugurated a newly constructed communal spring water tank, the first of 10 planned for Kageyo Sector. The infrastructure will provide safe, clean water to residents and support better hygiene practices. For local residents like Epiphanie Uwiringiyimana, a 32-year-old mother from Kageyo, the spring tank is already life-changing. “We used to struggle to collect clean water,” she said. “This spring tank will make a big difference in improving hygiene and sanitation in our homes.” Beyond agriculture and water access, the Akagari Cluster Program also strengthens local economic resilience. The initiative includes financial literacy training and the formation of community savings groups, with a two-year support period followed by a formal handover to local government. RTV continues to provide monitoring and evaluation support for three years post-handover to ensure sustained impact. These new projects across Ngororero and Nyabihu districts represent a transformative model of rural development, driven by government leadership and sustained by community capacity-building. RTV hopes this pilot will serve as a stepping stone to a broader partnership with the Government of Rwanda, reaching even more last-mile households in the fight against ultra-poverty.

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Featured: Raising The Village boosts agricultural sustainability in Ngororero, Nyabihu districts