Study on the Comparative Economic Advantage of Crop Production in Rwanda

Under a directive from the World Bank, CRI analyzed the comparative economic advantage of the production of a variety of crops in Rwanda, with the objective of advising the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) on which crops it should support. The study entailed outlining the counterfactual situation, assessing improved farming practices and their impacts on the domestic production of the selected crops, identifying the regions in Rwanda best suited to and competitive in the production of the selected crops, estimation of the contribution of each of the selected crops to the overall growth of the agricultural sector and to assess the key bottlenecks and constraints to higher agricultural output and suggest possible solutions. 

Based on interventions prescriptions from agricultural experts, CRI utilized the Integrated Investment Appraisal (IIA) methodology to model the financial and socio-economic impacts of crop cultivation using best farming practices as opposed to traditional farming practices. CRI developed models that simulated the farm budgets and productivity of the selected crops.  Hence, CRI was able to estimate the financial and economic returns of the proposed crop interventions. The estimates of the returns provided an evidence-based means of ranking the selected crops in terms of financial sustainability, the ability to boost farmers' incomes, contribution to the growth of the agriculture sector, and the comparative economic advantage of the domestic cultivation of the selected crops. 

The results of the study were shared with MINAGRI to help them in structuring agricultural policy and selecting the most efficient investment options in the agricultural sector amongst.