Inclusive Finance in agribusiness

The government, financial institutions, and development partners have played a crucial role in changing the mindset of citizens towards accessing financial services. currently, 86% of people receive financial services, primarily through technology such as Mobile money, Sacco, and Banks. However, residents in rural areas, particularly youth, women, and persons with disabilities, still face challenges in accessing loans and other support for their various activities, especially in agriculture and livestock. agriculture contributes 25% to the national GDP, and agriculture and livestock account for 70% of employment in rural areas.

In contributing to the government in implementing this program, the USAID/CNFA Hinga Wunguke Activity, in partnership with Bank of Kigali, organized an event called the “Kungahara na BK” campaign to engage farmers and explain financial services related to agriculture and livestock, encouraging them to seek out financial institutions for loans and other services to support the government’s objectives, the USAID/CNFA Hinga Wunguke Activity, in collaboration with the Bank of Kigali, organized an event titled the “Kungahara na BK ku bufatanye na Hinga Wunguke” campaign. The event aimed to engage farmers by providing information on financial products tailored for agricultural financing, and to encourage them to approach financial institutions for loans and other related services.

Mr.Akwiyimana H. Theophile Agribusiness Relationship Manager in Bank of Kigali said that the efforts are being made to train bk staff nationwide to help farmers understand the opportunities available in agriculture and how to access them through the bank. USAID/CNFA Hinga Wunguke Activity,  as a project sponsor of this program will help the government accelerate its journey toward food security and enhancing foods systems especially for the farmers often have limited investment capacity due to insufficient resources. “He added”

The Access to Finance Advisor for the Feed the Future USAID Hinga Wunguke Activity, Mr. Bigaruka Faustin, emphasized that this initiative aims to facilitate Bank of Kigali in extending its reach to underserved farmers and diverse value chains in rural areas. This workshop follows significant interventions that supported Bank of Kigali in refining its agricultural lending processes, enhancing procedures, developing and updating financial products tailored to the specific needs of farmers and value chain actors, and training staff on agricultural financing.

These efforts are strategically aligned to contribute to the Government of Rwanda’s NST2 objective of increasing agricultural lending from 6% to 10% within five years. This initiative not only addresses critical financing gaps but also strengthens the bank’s capacity to serve as a reliable financial partner for the agriculture sector.

At the end of the event, farmers asked questions and got the satisfactory answers, and expressing their appreciation for this initiative to address their concerns and requesting these events to continue.