IDH Rwanda hosts a delegation of the German Development Cooperation to showcase achievements of its Horti-Export project
In late April 2023, IDH Rwanda hosted a delegation of representatives from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the German Embassy in Rwanda, and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The delegation visited one of IDH’s partner companies, DAVET Ltd, which joined the IDH “Market-Led SME and Smallholder Farmer Business Support Project in Rwanda” (Horti-Export project) in May 2021.
The Horti-Export project has been supported by Invest for Jobs over the course of now two project phases. It focuses on creating permanent employment opportunities, improving working conditions, increasing smallholder farmers’ income and growing exports in Rwanda’s horticulture sector. Since May 2021, IDH has supported eight small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) in commercialising their business and professionalize their operations. By the end of February 2023, 501 permanent jobs were created along the horticulture value chain, over 3000 farmers are now engaged in commercial agriculture and export volumes almost doubled from 25 to 43.6 metric tons per week.
The purpose of the delegation visit was to witness project achievements through DAVET Ltd. The company started small as an out-grower of fresh produce to other exporters but has now secured itself clients in Europe. Currently, DAVET Ltd with IDH support is taking the last mile towards its GlobalGAP certification to start exporting independently. The delegation was taken to the farm, experiencing field activities necessary for good-quality exports of, in this case, bird eye chilli and listening to farmer testimonies. The IDH Rwanda team also took the opportunity to explain the project’s value chain approach: supporting selected exporting SMEs, their partner cooperatives and member farmers, with measures ranging from the basics such as access to quality farm inputs over the adoption of good agricultural practices to new linkages with premium markets. More and better jobs are created based on the developing business needs along the value chain, where the market-led approach ensures jobs are created for the long term – improving the livelihoods of Rwandans.
This visit was a great opportunity for IDH to strengthen its existing working relationship with Invest for Jobs in Rwanda, as well as to look into future opportunities for collaboration with the German Development Cooperation.
Under the Invest for Jobs brand, BMZ has put together a package of measures to support German, European and African companies engaging in Africa. The Special Initiative “Decent Work for a Just Transition” – the official title – offers comprehensive advice, contacts and financial support through its implementing organisations to overcome investment barriers. The development objective is to work together with companies to create up to 100,000 good jobs and to improve working conditions in its eight African partner countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Morocco, Rwanda, Senegal and Tunisia. The Special Initiative is making a targeted contribution to shaping the socio-ecological transformation of the private sector in line with a just transition, and to creating more and better jobs for women.
- Further information is available at: www.invest-for-jobs.com
- About the Horti-Export project: https://invest-for-jobs.com/en/projects/unternehmensf%C3%B6rderung-f%C3%BCr-ruandische-gartenbaubetriebe