Rwanda Rice Cooperative Seeks Government Help to Recover Rwf64 Million Owed Since 2019

A cooperative of rice farmers in Kirehe District has asked the government to help recover more than Rwf64 million owed by a now-defunct processing company since 2019. Leaders of COOPIRIKI Cyunuzi raised the issue on Friday, May 15, during a visit by the Local Government Minister to Cyunuzi marshland in Gatore Sector.

The cooperative says Izimano Industries owes farmers money for produce delivered during Season A of 2019. The cooperative says it supplied the rice but was never fully paid. The company paid part of the money and left a balance of more than Rwf64 million.

The cooperative sued the company and won the case, but the factory had accumulated debts owed to banks, the Rwanda Revenue Authority and other suppliers. When the factory assets were auctioned, the cooperative was left unpaid. That became a major loss for the farmers.

Government promised the farmers to look into the issues. Any possible process to recover that money should begin, the minister said. Farmers should not lose investments they worked hard for.

Despite the financial dispute, the cooperative has expanded over the past two decades. The cooperative started in 2006 farming 12 hectares of undeveloped marshland. It now cultivates 490 developed hectares and plans to add another 100 hectares. The cooperative has 3,458 members and produces an average of 6.4 tonnes of rice per hectare.

It also invested more than Rwf160 million in shares in Kirehe Rice Factory, earning a Rwf40 million dividend and expanded into other income-generating projects for members, including the construction of Nyakarambi modern market. Farmers say soil erosion and weak infrastructure continue to threaten production.

More than 40 hectares were damaged by erosion during the previous farming season. The hillsides are steep, which increases soil erosion, and water diverted from the Kayonza-Rusumo road also flows into the rice fields and destroys crops. The cooperative is also requesting stronger electricity connections to operate rice drying machines it recently purchased.

Nearly 18 percent of harvested rice is damaged while drying in open spaces, particularly during rainy periods. The minister praised the cooperative for transforming rice farming into a commercial business and pledged to follow up on the challenges raised.