PARTNERSHIPS IN HIGHLANDS OF RWANDA UNDER INTEGRATED AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH FOR DEVELOPMENT (IAR4D) ARRANGEMENTS

The Integrated Agricultural Research for Development (IAR4D) concept was proposed to respond to the failures of Agriculture Research and Development (ARD) systems in Sub-Saharan Africa. The key element of implementation and success of IAR4D was action sites called agricultural Innovation Platform (IPs) and their counterfactual sites. Social Network Analysis (SNA) is used to explain social relationships and partnerships. This study explored the patterns of agricultural partnerships among stakeholders in the highlands of Rwanda under IAR4D. Data were collected in action sites that included Mudende, Gataraga, Remera and Rwerere; and in their counterpart counterfactual sites that comprised of Bigogwe, Nyange and Gacaca. Results showed that in action sites, stakeholders were linked to different and diversified partners. Furthermore, many stakeholders were connected to several partners through agricultural partnerships, hence creating complex social networks with high density and degree of distribution. In the counterfactual sites, however, stakeholders were exclusively linked to the same kind of partners, and one stakeholder was connected to one partner through probably non-agricultural partnerships. These facts demonstrated that IAR4D created dense interfaces, significantly improved the networking system, and delivered technologies and innovations.Le concept de Recherche Agricole Int\ue9gr\ue9e pour le D\ue9veloppement (IAR4D) a \ue9t\ue9 propos\ue9 comme solution aux \ue9checs des syst\ue8mes Recherches Agricoles et D\ue9veloppement (ARD) en Afrique Sub-Saharienne. L\u2019\ue9l\ue9ment principal de la r\ue9ussite et du succ\ue8s d\u2019IAR4D \ue9tait l\u2019\ue9tablissement des sites d\u2019action appel\ue9s Plateformes Agricoles d\u2019innovation (IPs) ainsi que leurs sites t\ue9moins. L\u2019analyse du R\ue9seau Sociale (SNA) est utilis\ue9e pour expliquer les rapports et les relations sociaux des acteurs et des partenaires. La pr\ue9sente \ue9tude avait pour objectif d\u2019explorer les structures des relations socio-agricoles parmi les acteurs et les partenaires dans les hautes altitudes du Rwanda soumises \ue0 l\u2019IAR4D. Les donn\ue9es ont \ue9t\ue9 r\ue9colt\ue9es dans les sites d\u2019action comprenant\ua0: Mudende, Gataraga, Remera et Rwerere ainsi que dans leurs contreparties sites t\ue9moins incluant Bigogwe, Nyange et Gacaca. Les r\ue9sultats ont montr\ue9 que dans les sites d\u2019action, les acteurs \ue9taient associ\ue9s aux partenaires de natures diff\ue9rentes et un acteur \ue9tait li\ue9 \ue0 plusieurs partenaires a la fois. Dans les sites t\ue9moins par contre, les acteurs \ue9taient li\ue9s aux partenaires de m\ueames natures que ceux-ci et un acteur \ue9tait rarement li\ue9 \ue0 plus de deux partenaires. Ces faits ont montr\ue9 que l\u2019IAR4D a cr\ue9e un r\ue9seau socio-agricole tr\ue8s dense et sophistiqu\ue9 et ainsi a consid\ue9rablement am\ue9lior\ue9 le r\ue9seau socio-agricole. Par cons\ue9quent, l\u2019IAR4D peut \ueatre recommand\ue9 pour le transfert the technologies and des innovations agricoles

Transformation of Rwanda’s agrifood system structure and drivers

Rwanda has made remarkable economic progress during the past two decades, and its annual GDP growth rate reached more than 7 percent during the 2009 to 2019 period (NISR 2021). The rapid economic growth has been pro-poor, and the poverty rate fell from 58.9 percent in 2000/01 to 38.2 percent in 2016/17 (NISR 2018). The country has also emerged as a leader among sub-Saharan African countries in promoting innovation, gender equality, and an enabling business environment for development. The government remains strongly committed to a set of ambitious development goals, as set forth in the 2017–2024 National Strategy for Transformation (NST 1) and the corresponding sector-level strategic plans. While the global COVID-19 pandemic had a severe adverse effect on the economy, causing negative GDP growth in 2020, the country rebounded quickly and registered more than 10 percent growth in 2021 (NISR 2022). The country was only minimally affected by global commodity market disruptions resulting from the Russia-Ukraine war that started in 2022 and the global recession in 2023 (Arndt et al. 2023; Diao and Thurlow 2023). Looking forward, Rwanda’s GDP growth is projected to reach 6.7 percent in 2023 and 7.0 percent in 2024 (World Bank 2023), suggesting the economy is returning to its pre-pandemic high-growth trajectory

Synopsis: Public investment prioritization for Rwanda's agricultural transformation: Benefits of an increase in public spending on agriculture under PSTA4

Although public spending under the fourth Strategic Plan for the Transformation of Agriculture 2018– 2021 (PSTA 4) is generally well structured and cost-effective, funding has been largely stagnant— and even declining, when measured in constant prices—during PSTA’s first four years. This note summarizes the effects of a modest reallocation of public spending under PSTA 4 towards greater cost-effectiveness, as well as a modest increase in PSTA 4 spending. Results draw on an economywide modeling tool designed to prioritize public resources around four key development goals: economic growth, employment creation, poverty reduction, and diet quality improvement

Synopsis: Public investment for Rwanda's inclusive agricultural transformation: A midterm assessment of the contribution of PSTA4

Rwanda’s fourth Strategic Plan for the Transformation of Agriculture (PSTA 4), which extends from 2018 to 2024, is currently at its midpoint. This note highlights the contribution of PSTA 4 in its first half (2018–2021) to four key development outcomes: economic growth, job creation, poverty reduction, and diet quality improvement.Rwanda’s fourth Strategic Plan for the Transformation of Agriculture (PSTA 4), which extends from 2018 to 2024, is currently at its midpoint. This note highlights the contribution of PSTA 4 in its first half (2018–2021) to four key development outcomes: economic growth, job creation, poverty reduction, and diet quality improvement

Rwanda’s agrifood system: Structure and drivers of transformation

This paper assesses the structure of Rwanda’s current and evolving agrifood system and its contribution to national development. The paper reiterates the point that Rwanda’s agrifood system stretches well beyond primary agriculture and creates jobs and income opportunities throughout the economy. While off-farm components of Rwanda’s agrifood system have generally grown more rapidly than primary agriculture in recent years, growth varies across value chains of the agrifood system in the studied period. The growth diagnostic in this paper reveals that it is domestic markets that have driven the recent growth in Rwanda’s AFS other than exports. The paper’s forward-looking analysis assesses potentially differential impacts of value-chain development efforts on broad development outcomes. The analysis measures the synergies and trade-offs of value-chain development in the context of an inclusive agricultural transformation. Such analysis is conducted using the Rwanda Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model – an adaption of IFPRI’s Rural Investment and Policy Analysis (RIAPA) model to the Rwandan context. The modeling results indicate that value chains differ considerably in their effectiveness in achieving development goals and there are significant trade-offs among different development goals from promoting a specific value chain. The value chains that make a larger contribution to growth or job creation are not necessarily effective in reducing poverty or improving dietary quality – for example, value chains for coffee and tea – while value chains that play an important role in improving dietary quality may contribute less to job creation – such as vegetables or fruits. While there is no single value chain that can achieve all development goals effectively, it is possible to select a diversified set of value chains that complement each other in achieving different development goals. This latter strategy is a more realistic approach to growth and development

Public investment prioritization for Rwanda’s inclusive agricultural transformation: Evidence from rural investment and policy analysis modeling

As Rwanda is expected to return to its rapid growth trajectory following the COVID-19 pandemic, agriculture will continue to play a central role in the structural transformation of the entire economy. To this end, the Government of Rwanda continues to invest in the agricultural sector by building on Strategic Plans for the Transformation of Agriculture (PSTAs) that began in the early 2000s. The challenging question is how to prioritize public expenditures across a broad portfolio of policies and programs. Ambitious plans, whether in the short or long term, require difficult decisions. The prioritization of public investment becomes even more complex as Rwanda’s structural transformation advances and as new investments—beyond the farm—become critically important for the agricultural sector. The structural transformation process itself means that as agriculture becomes more integrated with the rest of the economy, public resource allocations need to address a wider range of issues across the entire food system; these include nutrition-sensitive food production systems, inclusive value chain development, nonfarm rural enterprise development, and climate-resilient sustainable intensification of both crops and livestock. This study provides evidence that is designed to assist the Government of Rwanda in its selection of agricultural policy, investment, and expenditure portfolios that reflect the country’s broad focus on its food system and structural transformation. This process of prioritization will need to incorporate multiple public investments targeting multiple development outcomes and will need to be grounded in the costeffective use of public resources in a largely market-led transformation process. This data-driven and evidence-based approach must critically underpin an informed investment prioritization process that helps achieve ambitious targets in an environment constrained by limited public resources. The study uses the Rural Investment and Policy Analysis (RIAPA) economywide model developed by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), with contributions from colleagues at the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI), the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) and the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR). The study draws on data from multiple sources as well as expert insights to inform the application of RIAPA’s Agricultural Investment for Data Analyzer (AIDA) module as a tool to measure the impacts of alternative public expenditure options on multiple development outcomes. Using this integrated modeling framework, the study links agricultural and rural development spending to four specific outcomes: economic growth, job creation, poverty reduction, and diet quality improvement; at the same time, it considers the synergies and tradeoffs associated with the different investment options in the transformation process. The paper first assesses the contribution of public expenditures to agricultural and rural development under the fourth Strategic Plan for Agriculture Transformation (PSTA 4) that extends between 2018 and 2024. These findings are important, given the fact that since the beginning of PSTA 4, the budget allocated to MINAGRI (measured in constant prices) has stagnated. Our results suggest that increased spending on agriculture is well justified and that such spending is essential if the Government of Rwanda is to achieve its long-term development goals

Rwanda: Impacts of the Ukraine and global crises on poverty and food security

Global food, fuel, and fertilizer prices have risen rapidly in recent months, driven in large part by the fallout from the ongoing war in Ukraine and the sanctions imposed on Russia. Other factors have contributed to the crisis, such as export bans and continued supply chain disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, between June 2021 and April 2022, the global prices of palm oil and wheat increased by 56 and 100 percent in real terms, respectively. At the same time, the price of fertilizer doubled, while crude oil and natural gas prices have also risen substantially. However, wide variation also exists across commodities, with real maize prices increasing by only 11 percent, and rice prices declining by 13 percent (Figure 1)

ADOPTION OF SOIL CONSERVATION THROUGH COLLECTIVE ACTIONS IN SOUTHWESTERN UGANDA

In developing countries, access to and use of renewable natural resources are essential for rural livelihoods to thrive. Hence, cooperation in the management of natural resources is increasingly an important strategy that can enhance long-term socio-ecological resilience. In most cases, collective actions have widely been recognised as an alternative institutional arrangement to centralised governance for the management of natural resources, but their success largely depends on factors that are specific to localities where they are implemented. In this study, factors that influence adoption and extent of adoption of natural resource conservation activities were identified using two case studies: Bubaare and Bufundi Innovation Platforms in Uganda. The drivers of adoption of community natural resource management strategies are analysed using an Ordered Logit Model while extent of adoption is analysed using a truncated regression model. The education level of a household head, membership in collective action group, and perception of plot slope and relevance of bye-laws were factors associated with likelihood of adoption. Value of livestock, membership in collective action group, access to credit and off-farm income were found to positively influence the level of investment. Thus, collective action increases opportunities for adoption; hence farmers should be supported to work collectively.Dans les pays en voie de d\ue9veloppement, l\u2019acc\ue8s et l\u2019utilisation des ressources naturelles sont essentiels pour la suivie en mileu rural et pour y prosp\ue9rer. Ainsi, la coop\ue9ration dans la gestion des ressources naturelles est de plus en plus une strat\ue9gie importante qui peut am\ue9liorer \ue0 long terme la coh\ue9sion socio-\ue9cologique. Dans beaucoup de cas; les actions collectives ont \ue9t\ue9 largement reconnues comme une alternative d\u2019organisation institutionnelle pour centraliser la gouvernance de la gestion des ressources naturelles, mais leur succ\ue8s d\ue9pend largement des facteurs qui sont sp\ue9cifiques aux milieux o\uf9 elles sont mise en oeuvre. Dans cette \ue9tude, les facteus qui influencent l\u2019adoption et le degr\ue9 d\u2019adoption des activit\ue9s de conservation des ressources naturelles \ue9taient identifi\ue9s en utilisant deux cas d\u2019\ue9tude: Les Plate-formes d\u2019Innovation de Bubaare et Bufundi en Ouganda. Les forces motrices d\u2019adoption des strategies de gestion des ressources naturelles communautaires sont analys\ue9es en utilsant un mod\ue8le Logit Ordonn\ue9 tandis que le degr\ue9 d\u2019adoption est analys\ue9 en utilisant un mod\ue8le de r\ue9gression tronqu\ue9. Le niveau d\u2019\ue9ducation du chef de m\ue9nage, l\u2019appartenance au groupe d\u2019action collective, et la perception de la pente de la parcelle et limportance des arr\ueat\ue9s \ue9taient les facteurs associ\ue9s au taux d\u2019adoption. La value du b\ue9tail, l\u2019appartenance au groupe d\u2019action collective, l\u2019acc\ue8s au cr\ue9dit et le revenu non- agricole \ue9taient les facteurs qui influencent positivement le niveau d\u2019investissement. Donc, les actions collectives augmentent les opportunit\ue9s pour l\u2019adoption; ainsi les producteurs devraient \ueatre encourag\ue9s \ue0 travailler de fa\ue7con collective

α/β-Hydrolase Domain 6 Deletion Induces Adipose Browning and Prevents Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes

SummarySuppression of α/β-domain hydrolase-6 (ABHD6), a monoacylglycerol (MAG) hydrolase, promotes glucose-stimulated insulin secretion by pancreatic β cells. We report here that high-fat-diet-fed ABHD6-KO mice show modestly reduced food intake, decreased body weight gain and glycemia, improved glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, and enhanced locomotor activity. ABHD6-KO mice also show increased energy expenditure, cold-induced thermogenesis, brown adipose UCP1 expression, fatty acid oxidation, and white adipose browning. Adipose browning and cold-induced thermogenesis are replicated by the ABHD6 inhibitor WWL70 and by antisense oligonucleotides targeting ABHD6. Our evidence suggests that one mechanism by which the lipolysis derived 1-MAG signals intrinsic and cell-autonomous adipose browning is via PPARα and PPARγ activation, and that ABHD6 regulates adipose browning by controlling signal competent 1-MAG levels. Thus, ABHD6 regulates energy homeostasis, brown adipose function, and white adipose browning and is a potential therapeutic target for obesity and type 2 diabetes

Rwanda smallholder agriculture commercialization survey: Overview using selected categorical variables

This report provides a comprehensive statistical overview of agricultural household data collected by IFPRI from a smallholder commercialization survey in late 2022. Sampled to be representative to the provincial level, ten households were surveyed in 202 villages for a total of 2,020 households interviewed. The survey covers a wide range of topics including household demographics, agricultural farm holdings, input use, crop choice, levels of commercialization and other non-farm sources of income. The statistical tables are generally presented by principal categorical variables of interest which include provinces, gender and age of household head (youth/mature), as well as size of land holdings. These designations are meant to provide general insights into the current state of agricultural households in Rwanda. Building on this report, future research, on more specific topics of interest, will be performed to build a more comprehensive understanding of agricultural household economic behavior for broader understanding as well as potential policy engagement