28 young Rwandan agri-preneurs have acquired skills in reducing postharvest losses for fruits and vegetables and the use of new technologies in storing and processing horticultural products to increase their shelf life and add value to the products.
The young people acquired the skills during a training run from the 8th to the 10th January 2019 at Huye-based Rubona station of Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB). It was organized by the Reducing Postharvest Losses in Rwanda Project and Postharvest Training and Services Center of RAB.
The main objective of the training was to improve nutritional aspect of consumers, youth employment and gender empowerment in the horticulture value chain.
The young agri-preneurs enhanced their skills in in small scale processing and homemade products. They were, for instance, able to make cakes and biscuits following the protocols for Cake making from wheat flour, Orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP), Tomato ketchup making, Jam (papaya, pineapple) making, fruit juice processing from pineapple, passion, tree tomato and their blended juice, and the like.
The government of Rwanda is committed to promoting agro-processing to add value to the agricultural produce. The fourth Strategic plan for the Transformation of Agriculture (PSTA 4) aims to facilitate private sector investment in processing and value addition of agricultural value chains.