Rwanda: Varsity graduate reaping big from urban farming
“There is land in urban dwellers’ homes that is not exploited. We design and implement agriculture and livestock projects for urban and rural dwellers.
By Michel Nkurunziza
The New Time
Oct 11, 2022
Excerpt:
“After graduating I had no capital. I opted for designing food gardens which I would present to households in Kigali. Whoever appreciated my products had to buy materials and then construct the food garden for them to pay me,” he said.
Kabagambe who founded “Urban and Rural Farming Development Company Ltd” said he started from 10 food gardens which he constructed for clients. These gradually increased.
“I would produce brochures and flyers showing how I can construct food gardens, write my contacts on them and distribute them to households in Kigali. Whoever would be interested, I would then get a job to set up food gardens for them. That is the source of the Rwf1.5 million which I spent on expanding my urban farming business,” he said.
Agriculture economists say that through urban agriculture it is possible to help poor people cope with food scarcity through the growing of plants, raising of livestock within and around cities, community gardening, rooftop gardening, urban forest gardening, green walls, vertical farms, animal husbandry, and urban beekeeping, among others.
The firm, which focuses on providing farming and livestock services along the value chain, designs urban farming innovations and techniques which it sells to urban dwellers.
“There is land in urban dwellers’ homes that is not exploited. We design and implement agriculture and livestock projects for urban and rural dwellers. They can pay us for the service or get shares in their projects. We also provide small scale irrigation services.”Read the complete article here.
