(REUTERS) Rwanda miller sees 2008 sugar output growing 25 pct
Rwanda miller sees 2008 sugar output growing 25 pctTue 18 Sep 2007, 10:28 GMT
KIGALI (Reuters) - Rwanda's sole sugar miller plans to increase production by 25 percent to 15,000 tonnes in 2008, to beat an emerging deficit in the local market, the mill's manager said on Tuesday. The Kabuye Sugar Works owned by the Madhvani Group currently produces 12,000 tonnes.
"With effect from next year, we will increase our annual production to 15,000 tonnes hoping that at that level, we will be meeting 75 percent of market demand," Rao Mahakali, general Manager for Kabuye Sugar Works, told Reuters in an interview.
Rwanda's current sugar demand stands at an annual 20,000 tonnes and the deficit is largely covered by imports from Zambia, Malawi and Kenya.
Land is scarce in Rwanda and has been the biggest hurdle to increasing the factory's output, Mahakali said, adding that much of its cane is grown in swampy areas that flood.
"Out of the total 3,100 hectares leased to our factory to grow sugarcane, about 1,500 hectares remain unutilised simply because of periodic floods," he said.
The tiny African nation's terrain is hilly and swampy and is susceptible to landslides and floods during the rainy season.
"We are engaging government to find us alternative land to grow enough sugarcane because the question of limited land continues to be the biggest challenge to our production capacity," he added.
Mahakali said his firm was largely dependent on supplies from outgrowers cultivating farms on over 2,200 hectares across the nation. The industry employs about 10,000 Rwandans.
The company intends to set up a second factory in Eastern Rwanda to meet growing demand, once more land is made available, he said.
Rwanda is one of Africa's most densely populated nations with over 300 people per square km.
Labels: EXPORTS, RWANDA, SUGAR CAIN
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