Rwanda faces persistent challenges with malnutrition, and there is increasing interest in the country in taking a food systems approach to tackling it. However, getting this new approach into the development and agricultural sector’s agendas requires understanding the landscape of actors involved. In response, the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition commissioned an analytical mapping of actors involved in nutrition and the food system in Rwanda, which was implemented by the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute. This was accomplished by conducting a stakeholder mapping at district and national levels through key informant interviews and Net-Map analysis as well as a policy landscape analysis.
Rwanda is writing a new chapter in its journey toward prosperity. A journey rooted in resilience, innovation, and the power of its people. At the heart of this transformation is agriculture: a sector that not only feeds the nation but holds the promise of widespread economic growth, improved nutrition, and environmental sustainability.
WHA Global Nutrition Stunting Target 2012-2025
Achieve a 40% reduction in the number of children under-5 who are stunted
WHA Global Nutrition Overweight Target 2012-2025
Ensure that there is no increase in childhood overweight
A diverse diet is important for health and well-being, contributing to lower malnutrition, including micronutrient deficiency diseases (hidden hunger), as well as underweight, overweight, and associated ill health like low immune system function and non-communicable diseases. It is highlighted under Rwanda’s draft Strategic Plan for Agricultural Transformation (PSTA-5) (2024 to 2030).
Africa’s Food Systems Forum- AGRF, is the world’s premier forum for African agriculture and food systems, bringing together stakeholders to take practical actions and share lessons that will move African food systems forward.
The Women Deliver 2023 Conference (WD2023) will take place in-person in Kigali, Rwanda, as well as virtually, from 17-20 July 2023. As one of the largest multi-sectoral convenings to advance gender equality, WD2023 will convene 6,000 people in Kigali and 200,000+ people online
GAIN has long supported SMEs to increase their production of safe and nutritious foods but has found it difficult to understand the impact of such activities on consumers. As food is a fast-moving consumer good, which travels in large volumes between diverse actors of a value chain, spanning wide areas, it can be hard to identify its end consumers, and collecting data from them can be resource intensive.
The COVID-19 pandemic is a multiplier of vulnerability, compounding threats to food security and nutrition (FSN) while exposing weaknesses in food systems. In response, the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) developed the Keeping Food Markets Working (KFMW) programme to provide targeted support to help sustain core food systems.
A method called Comprehensive Nutrient Gap Assessment (CONGA) was developed to fill this information gap. This approach provides guidance on how to use various types of evidence to assess the public health significance of nutrient gaps in a given population and the best food sources of those nutrients.
GAIN and partners, including the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Business Network (co-convened by the World Food Programme (WFP)), undertook a survey of food system SMEs in Rwanda in October/November 2020, aiming to assess the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated control measures on their businesses and their support needs.
