Of Rwanda’s roughly 600,000 hectares of irrigable land, only 10% is currently irrigated. With a more developed irrigation industry, farmers would be able to take advantage of three growing seasons, rather than one, enabling better food security and income. However, there are gaps in knowledge needed to advance the industry. 

Seeking to make these advancements accessible, staff at the Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute have completed a study which maps and analyzes the business ecosystem for smallholder irrigation in Rwanda. The Rwanda smallholder irrigation ecosystem map shines a light on farmer-led irrigation - the distribution and use of small irrigation pumps and associated equipment by individual farmers or shared between a few farmers - and analyzes the business ecosystem for providing those goods and services.  

In this episode, Arianna Elnes, DWFI communications specialist, interviews Natacha Akaliza, DWFI program consultant; Savant Nzayiramya, DWFI policy intern; and Nick Brozović, DWFI director of policy; about the team’s research and key findings.

View the full report and findings » https://go.unl.edu/ecosystem