Today, avocado and chili-based commodities produced in Rwanda have a rising domestic and international market demand. Despite available market opportunities, poor smallholder farmers involved in avocado and chili value chains encounter challenges across production, value addition, quality control, and marketing. Alongside, the performance of a value chain structure determines the magnitude for job creation along the chain. Multiple official reports attest that the vast majority of active labour in Rwanda is youth in spite of employment scarcity. Avocado and chili are among the selected high-income generating value chains in the country thereby expected to create huge employment opportunities provided that these chains are greatly upgraded along their respective marketing channels.
To ensure a highly productive and profitable agri-sector, the government of Rwanda collaborates with numerous stakeholders, such as international development organisations, including Kilimo Trust (KT). Following its strategic plan 2024 – 2027, “Kilimo Trust” is implementing a project named “Inclusive agri-services delivery for employment creation” funded by AGRA, which is dedicated at creating employment opportunities for youth in avocado and chili value chains in Rwanda. Thereby, the project is expecting to create 4,000 new job opportunities for young people.
Despite the vital initiative of the project, there is a lack of information about the current status regarding actual profile of key actors and opportunities project in avocado and chili value chains in Rwanda. Hence, the project needs baseline data in order to design the action plan for the project interventions and thereafter to carry out smooth implementation, progress monitoring and performance evaluation. Therefore, to fill the existing knowledge gap, the present consultancy work aims at conducting the value chain analysis and market assessment of chili and poultry as per the terms of reference.