Press Release

Sustainable Growers Rwanda Innovative Training Program Graduates More Than 13,000 Women Coffee Farmers in Rwanda

Recognizing 13,067 women through the Premium Sharing Rewards (PSR) program, “Wakoze Neza Muhinzi”

Gakenke, Rwanda, Wednesday 19th November 2025 – Sustainable Growers, an NGO specializing in innovative coffee cultivation techniques for smallholder women coffee farmers, is celebrating the graduation of more than 13,000 women coffee farmers across Rwanda.

The graduates, drawn from Kayonza, Gakenke, Gicumbi, Nyamasheke, Rusizi, Huye, and Nyaruguru Districts, have completed a year-long training program focused on best agricultural practices in coffee, home roasting, storytelling for leadership, and market access activities.

The national launch event taking place in Gakenke District on November 19, 2025, was followed by a series of graduation ceremonies in the other districts from November 19 to 27, 2025, marking the completion of the program’s annual cycle.

In addition to the graduates, Sustainable Growers recognized 13,067 women who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to climate-smart techniques, teamwork within cooperatives, and active engagement in community initiatives through its Premium Sharing Rewards (PSR) program, locally known as “Wakoze Neza Muhinzi.”

With the long-standing support of our founding partner, Bloomberg Philanthropies, we have reached over 328,000 people, benefiting more than 60,000 of their beneficiaries across Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Tanzania. The Graduation and Premium Sharing Reward (PSR) initiative aims to boost motivation, strengthen community leadership, and reinforce the central role of women in the coffee sector. This annual event is part of Sustainable Growers’ mission to promote sustainable agriculture, strengthen women’s leadership, and advance rural livelihoods; thus reaffirming its support to national governments’ economic development goals to improve productivity, quality, and build market access for coffee farmers and producers.

The Premium Sharing Rewards (PSR) program incentivizes women coffee farmers for implementing Best Agricultural Practices and engaging in public health and sanitation initiatives, such as health insurance, school enrollment, and malaria prevention. Throughout the year, farmers are assessed after each training module, earning performance scores that contribute to year-end rewards.

During graduation ceremonies, they receive certificates of completion along with practical assets such as livestock, farm tools, or household materials to support their continued growth.

About Sustainable Growers

Sustainable Growers is a non-profit that brings an innovative training component to the coffee business and has a commitment to bringing smallholder farmers up the coffee value chain. Sustainable Growers aligns its growth strategies to government visions to unlock the potential of women’s co-ops to become leading African coffee entrepreneurs, providing agricultural training, coffee processing, and market-based skills to women coffee farmers and their families in Rwanda, DRC, and Tanzania. With the generous support from our founding partners at Bloomberg Philanthropies, since the inception of the organization, Sustainable Growers has enrolled over 60,000 women farmers in training, which has helped to increase the value of their crops in the first months of training by more than 40%.