Rwanda is seeking to build on record agricultural export earnings by strengthening value addition, product traceability and access to international markets through a new partnership between the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) and Connect for Impact Advisory Group (C4Impact).
NAEB Chief Executive Officer Claude Bizimana and C4Impact President Dr Agnes Kalibata signed the Memorandum of Understanding establishing the partnership.
The agreement comes shortly after Rwanda recorded its highest-ever annual earnings from agricultural exports, with revenues reaching $1.1 billion in the 2025/2026 financial year, up 24.3% from $893 million the previous year. NAEB has attributed the growth to improvements in export infrastructure, quality assurance, traceability, post-harvest handling and market access.
Under the new partnership, NAEB and C4Impact will collaborate on technical support and measures designed to make Rwandan agricultural products more competitive in international markets.
A key focus will be strengthening traceability systems so that products can be tracked from their source through processing and distribution. The partners will also support exporters in meeting international requirements for product quality, safety and hygiene.
The agreement will further focus on identifying and expanding export markets, improving post-harvest handling and storage, and attracting investment into agriculture and value addition.
The partnership is particularly significant as Rwanda seeks to convert rising export volumes into greater value for producers and businesses by processing more agricultural products before they reach international markets.
Rwanda is also working to diversify its agricultural export destinations and products. Under the Fifth Strategic Plan for Agriculture Transformation, the country aims to raise annual agricultural export revenues to nearly $2 billion by 2028/2029, up from a baseline of $857 million in 2022/2023.
The latest $1.1 billion performance puts Rwanda well on its way toward that target, but the new partnership signals a shift beyond simply increasing export earnings toward improving the quality, value and competitiveness of products reaching global markets.
NAEB has identified traceability, quality assurance, market diversification and value addition as key areas for sustaining the momentum and strengthening Rwanda’s position in international agricultural trade.
