News

Focus on confidence building

Member commitment is one of the main focus points in the SDGP maize project in Rwanda. Through cooperative trainings, advisory and working on good agricultural practices, technical and management knowledge has been improved at 15 maize cooperatives. A total of 257 farmers were directly trained in Farmer Field Schools and an additional 106 trainees received management trainings. 

Cooperation between cooperatives for financial resource mobilisation

It is a pleasure to share with you an experience of collaboration between cooperatives from Burkina Faso. Through an analysis of the value chain, with the ambition to strengthen its position and to offer the best services to its members, UCRB Faso Djigui, one of our rice cooperatives in the Kou plain in Bama, Burkina Faso, has decided to vertically integrate the value chain by processing and selling rice. In order to achieve this, the goal is to set up a rice processing factory.

Agriterra bids farewell to its founder and Director Kees Blokland

After almost 25 years, Agriterra is bidding farewell to its founder Kees Blokland who is retiring. On the afternoon of Thursday 7 October, a farewell reception for staff and invitees will be held in Musis in Arnhem, the place where the festive launch of Agriterra took place in 1998 and to which at least forty agricultural organisations were invited at the time.  

Harmonisation of potato extension materials in Rwanda

In Rwanda, various parties have been providing extension services to potato farmers especially in the Northern and Western provinces of the country, each with their own approach in a non-cooperative way. Most of these extension services are publicly funded, which means that they are funded by NGO’s or governments rather than by farmers. Even though pluralism within extension was considered healthy, there were some issues as presented by Agriterra Rwanda through its intern Sjoerd van Vilsteren (from Wageningen University) during his internship in Rwanda.

Alliance to improve market access for small producers

Agriterra and e-trade platform Producers Market signed a memorandum of understanding to improve market access and create new and better opportunities for small scale farmers worldwide.  

Youth’s own coffee brand in Rwanda

In Rwanda, the coffee sector shows a growing gap between ageing coffee farmers and the up-and-coming generation. There is a need to attract youths to join the coffee business, and more particularly the production. To tackle this challenge Agriterra is partnering with primary coffee processors, to attract young people to get involved along the entire value chain of coffee. Read below the success story of Abakundakawa cooperative.

Enhancing women participation in the affairs of their cooperatives

Combined approach shows its value

ETHIOPIA - In 2019 Agriterra started to support sixteen primary cooperatives (PC), all members of Damot FCU (Farmer Cooperative Unions), a client of Agriterra. With the help of Agriterra, Kuch PC managed to more than double its output marketing within a year.