Rwanda’s Chamber of Deputies has approved a new agriculture law that seeks to modernize the country’s farming sector by strengthening regulation, promoting technology-driven agriculture and increasing productivity.
The bill, passed on Thursday, July 23, now awaits presidential assent before it becomes law.
The legislation consolidates three existing laws governing seeds and plant varieties, plant protection, and the use of fertilizers and agricultural chemicals into a single legal framework. The government says the move will improve oversight, streamline regulation and strengthen governance of the sector.
It also aims to promote professional farming, encourage investment, increase agricultural output and ensure the safe use of fertilizers and pesticides to protect public health and the environment. Detailed implementation measures will be issued through regulations by the Minister of Agriculture.
Presenting the report of the Parliamentary Committee on Land, Agriculture, Livestock and Environment, committee chairperson Alice Muzana said the law addresses gaps in the existing legal framework that had affected the management of the sector and contributed to losses for some farmers.
She said Agriculture Minister Dr. Telesphore Ndabamenye told the committee the reforms are intended to expand the use of science and technology in agriculture, attract private investment and improve farmers’ livelihoods through higher productivity.
Parliament made several amendments before approving the bill. The government initially submitted a draft containing 106 articles, but lawmakers adopted a revised version with 110 articles, adding 14 new provisions, substantially amending 40 articles, making editorial changes to 55 others, while only two articles remained unchanged.
Many of the new provisions strengthen the protection of new plant varieties, while the committee recommended that offences initially provided for in the bill be replaced with administrative sanctions to be defined in ministerial regulations.
During the debate, MPs also questioned the approval of imported seed varieties. MP Françoise Mukandekezi argued that seeds approved abroad should not automatically be authorized for use in Rwanda because differences in climate, soil and environmental conditions could affect their performance.
In response, Dr. Ndabamenye said Rwanda already has a strict seed approval system. He said all new seed varieties undergo research and field trials before they are included on the ministry’s annual list of approved seeds.
The minister also emphasized the need to protect newly developed plant varieties, saying breeding improved seeds requires years of research and significant investment.
Once enacted, the law is expected to strengthen food security, promote sustainable farming practices and provide a modern legal framework to support Rwanda’s agricultural transformation.
