Rwanda: Garlic Farmers Face Severe Losses Amidst Falling Prices

Published 2020년 10월 29일

Tridge summary

Rwanda's garlic farmers are facing significant challenges due to the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The closure of borders has disrupted export markets, leading to an oversupply and drastic price drop of garlic in the local market. As a result, farmers are experiencing substantial losses. Additionally, the lack of post-harvest handling facilities is exacerbating the problem. The farmers have appealed to the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) for support, including the establishment of market centres at borders and the completion of modern drying facilities. Efforts are underway to link farmers to both local and export markets, and to add value to the garlic produce.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

Garlic farmers in Rwanda have appealed for government support, saying that the lack of access to market is hurting their earnings. According to figures from National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB), the country has over 13,000 garlic farmers grouped in 11 cooperatives, who produce over 3,000 tonnes of garlic every year The produce is sold both locally and in the export market. However, the closure of borders with neighbouring countries in order to contain the spread of Covid-19 affected Rwanda's garlic exports; as a result, farmers now heavily rely on the local market. This, they say, has led to oversupply of garlic and effectively occasioned a drop in prices. A kilogramme of garlic drastically decreased from between Rwf3,000 and Rwf4,000 to between Rwf350 and Rwf700, plunging farmers in enormous losses. "We are counting huge losses," Emmanuel Semugeshi, a garlic farmer from Musanze District told The New Times Since March, Semugeshi planted 1,200 kilogrammes of garlic ...

Source: All Africa