According to Yoshiyuki Sato, the founder and chairman of Bloom Hills, the first flower shipment to Europe, worth €400,000 (Rwf406 million), is expected within two weeks, while the main exports from the project, which is supported by Hachimantai city in Japan, start in November.
Flower growing is one of the areas Rwanda earmarked as “quick win” sectors over six years ago as the country sought to ramp up its export revenues. The plan also aimed at weaning the country from flower imports that were worth millions of dollars. To attract investors into the sector, the government unveiled a raft of incentives for investors in agriculture, including value added tax refund, duty free on importation of equipment, capital gains tax exemption, and zero tax on corporate income tax for firms planning to relocate to Rwanda.
The country also wanted to capitalize on its excellent climate and good business environment as well as institutional support available for pioneer flower investors.
However, the area under flowers has been expanding at a slow pace over the past five years despite all this support to the young sector. That seems to be changing though. With new projects coming on online, Rwanda can now have a bigger slice of the flower export cake, bolster its prospects as a flower exporter, spur foreign earnings and create new jobs.
