After the drama of missing my flight and exchanging calm and collected
at the ticket desk for sophisticated meltdown, (quick glance left and
right to make sure no one is looking), I arrived in Rwanda just after
midnight.
This week I am in the East African country finding out how soaring
global food prices and climate change are having an impact on rural
communities ahead of World Food Day on 16 October.
No matter how many times I travel to Africa, the beauty of the
dramatic mountains and lush green valleys never cease to amaze me.
Rwanda is stunning, and is known as the land of a thousand hills, and
as we do the two hour drive to the projects we are visiting it's easy
to see why.
What is more difficult to understand, is how a country with such green
fertile land, can also still have some big challenges when it comes to
feeding its people.
Sixty per-cent of the population live below the poverty line. Eighty
per cent are engaged in subsistence farming, growing food for just you
and your family to eat. So, poverty in Rwanda is closely correlated
with farm productivity.
The most serious risk of hunger is related to people who own farms and
fail to diversify from the staple crops, such as kidney beans and
sweet potatoes. The problem is made worse when harvests fail due to
poor weather conditions, forcing farmers into a hunger gap. This is
something that aid agency Tearfund is working with communities to
address, through its local partner, Moucecore.
I met an amazingly inspirational man called Jean, who was a genocide
survivor and lost everything he had. Today, after being taught organic
farming techniques and learning the importance of farming different
types of weather resistant crops, he is able to feed his family. He
also sells the produce that he grows on his farm. "Three years ago my
life was not good, but now business people come to my home to buy my
beans." He tells us in a proud but gracious way.
I could have listened to him all day - and was suddenly glad that I
had kicked up a fuss at Heathrow to get on another flight the same
day. Initially ticket desk man had said I would have to fly out two
days later. Gosh to think I wouldn't have met Jean...
I heard many stories like his as we walked through the villages and
talked to people. It was great to hear positive stories about food
starting to come out of Africa. Rwanda has along way to go, as I have
said there are big challenges ahead; later this week we will meet
communities that haven't had access to the support that Jean has.
That said, after the pain of genocide this country has made remarkable
progress. It is tipped to be the first African country to achieve
Millennium Development Goal One, which is to eradicate extreme
poverty. With young men and women as focused and determined as Jean, I
can't see why this wouldn't be achieved.