Dorman Coffee Rwanda, an East African coffee producer Friday unveiled nine renovated classrooms of a primary school in Kanjongo sector, Nyamasheke District. Located in a district that produces the most coffee in the country, Ruheru St Augustin Primary School is surrounded by hills dotted with coffee trees and most of the childrens parents are coffee farmers. Before the renovation, classroom floors were bare and when it rained, the roof could leak so much that we would have to move to another room, Junior Mugiraneza, a pupil in primary six narrated. When writing, knees were used for support because we had no desks. We sat on benches and the doors couldnt be closed. Now, rejoicing in a new environment, Mugiraneza, 11, hopes to make 90 percent of grades in primary leaving exam. In partnership with Taylors Arrogate, a British coffee roaster, Dorman spent nearly Rwf50 million on the schools renovation. With a total of 13 classrooms, the project replenished nine with a new roof, new desks, cemented the floors, painted walls and two chalkboards in every room, among others. Jean Harindintwari is a coffee farmer whose grandchild studies at the school. In his 60s, he said the school was in very poor condition. When Dorman started buying our coffee at a better price, we saw development coming to us, said the grandparent, adding that other companies should learn from Dorman to uplift their grassroots suppliers by giving back a slice of their profits to the community. He and Drocella Mukarugema, the Vice-Chair of the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) Vice-Chair believe the development will improve the childrens learning conditions and boost the schools performance. Renovating classrooms is a very noble project, said Kennedy Keya, Dormans trading director. Before, the children were learning in bad conditions. But now, its a very big relief. When we contribute to the community, its a boost to the farmers to work more to produce good quality coffee, knowing that their children are learning comfortably. Ruheru primary school has 837 learners and 14 teachers in primary and nursery sections. The company promised to respond to remaining issues such as building more toilets, retaining rainwater and fixing undone classrooms. Dorman has carried out numerous projects to impact communities. Among others, the Kenya-based coffee buyer has participated in Girinka Program, empowered 3000 women through capacity building, worked on roads and water supply. Dorman Coffee has nine factories across the country with 5 of them in Nyamasheke, collecting an estimated 35,000 tons of green coffee annually.
