Proceedings: 2nd International Conference on Food and Agricultural Economics: POTENTIAL OF ORGANIC FARMING IN RWANDA

The purpose of this paper is to examine the present situation and potential developments of organic agriculture in Rwanda. The side effects of conventional farming encouraged the producers to adopt organic agriculture as a solution. This paper first reviews the trends in organic farming in the world,and then gives detailed information about organic farming in Rwanda where a high potential of organic production exists due to the abundance of highly fertile and uncontaminated land reserves. Rwanda’s present agricultural policies mostly focus on an increase of agricultural production per hectare and per animal. This goal requires increasing use of subsidized chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Thegovernment’s extension system promotes conventional farming and country policy of growing priority crops in specific areas are among the major issues hindering the country's transition to an organic state. In this paper, the details of the Rwanda’s organic farming potential have been highlightedby using a SWOT analysis. Appropriate government supports like facilitating the organic farmers' participation at international trade fairs will strengthen Rwanda's fame as an organic country, linking farmers to export markets, joint negotiations with certification bodies, and rising awareness through media will be a triumphant strategy for the Rwanda’s organic farming to develop further. The results of this paper will provide useful information for policymakers, extension specialists, NGOs dealing with organic farming, and researchers.