Rwanda: Why the government set a fixed coffee farm gate price

Published 2023년 3월 6일

Tridge summary

The National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) of Rwanda has set a fixed price of Rwf410 for good quality coffee cherries for the current season, unlike previous years where a farm gate price was set. However, farmers and the Rwanda Coffee Cooperatives Federation (RCCF) argue that the fixed price is low compared to the increased cost of production. The international coffee price has seen a downward trend, but with an upward trend since hitting the lowest point. Inflation in Rwanda was 15.3% between January 2022 and January 2023, especially affecting rural people and coffee farmers due to high price increases in goods and services. Despite these challenges, coffee exports revenue increased by 34% in 2022.

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

Original content

Unlike the common practice where the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) would set a farm gate price, the minimum price at which coffee cherries must be bought from farmers, it has set a fixed price this time around. According to a communique issued by NAEB on February 23, 2023, the fixed price for a kilo of good quality coffee cherries is Rwf410 for the current season. With farm gate prices, farmers have the possibility to get higher prices for their produce, in case there are buyers. For instance, on February 11, 2022, NAEB announced that quality coffee cherries had to be bought from farmers at a minimum price of Rwf410 a kilo, an increase of 65 per cent from Rwf248 a kilo in the previous year. Claudine Uwineza, a coffee farmer from Nyamasheke District, Western Province, told The New Times mid-February that such a price was by far exceeded -- some farmers sold their produce at almost double that -- as coffee factories scrambled to get the produce from them. ...

Source: All Africa