CALA Cohort 3 Progress Report

CALA is an initiative led by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and implemented in collaboration with the African Management Institute (AMI).

Challenges Faced by Farmers

Project Goals

Rwanda | Empowering Rogatini

Farmers Through Biofortified Beans

In Rwanda, delegates launched an initiative aimed at increasing incomes and

nutrition by promoting biofortified beans among Rogatini farmers. This initiative

addressed challenges such as limited export competitiveness and malnutrition by

positioning biofortified beans as both a health solution and a premium market

opportunity.

The project focused on increasing the value of Rwanda’s bean exports while

improving the livelihoods of local farmers. By promoting biofortified beans, the

team sought to align national nutrition objectives with income generation

strategies, linking smallholder production directly to structured markets.

Rogatini farmers, like many others across Rwanda, encountered barriers such as

inconsistent quality, fragmented aggregation systems, and limited access to

premium markets. Despite Rwanda's ambition to scale up bean exports, farmers

struggled to meet export standards or capture higher-value opportunities,

especially with biofortified varieties that combated micronutrient deficiencies.