Strengthening Local Voice and Accountability in Rwanda’s Agricultural Governance (Twiyubakire-Engage)

Context and Rationale of the Project 

Rwanda’s Second National Strategy for Transformation (NST2: 2024–2029) and the Strategic Plan for Agricultural Transformation (PSTA5) aim to achieve over 6% annual growth in the agriculture sector by modernizing food systems and enhancing climate resilience for smallholder farmers. These frameworks prioritize inclusive market access and productivity gains to drive national economic transformation. However, systemic constraints persist, as smallholder farmers especially women, youth, and persons with disabilities frequently face limited access to information and weak social accountability mechanisms. These barriers restrict their participation in decision-making and their ability to ensure that district-level resource allocations and agricultural services effectively address their specific needs (National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda, 2025; Wikifarmer, 2025; IFAD & Cordaid, 2025).

To address these governance gaps, the Twiyubakire-Engage project, implemented by CCOAIB in partnership with Trócaire and funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), focuses on strengthening transparent and accountable agricultural governance through enhanced citizen engagement and evidence-based advocacy. Running from October 2026 to March 2027, the initiative empowers marginalized smallholder groups to influence agricultural planning, budgeting, and service delivery at both district and national levels.

     Project Goal and Objectives

 Overall Goal: Contribute to improved and inclusive agriculture service delivery, increased citizen satisfaction, and poverty reduction.

 Specific Objectives:

§  To improve citizen engagement in planning, budgeting, and monitoring of agricultural services at the district level.   

§  To strengthen the capacity of farmer representatives to generate and use evidence for advocacy.

§  To promote alignment between national policies (NST2, PSTA5) and district-level implementation, including in the decentralization of the Small-Scale Irrigation Technology (SSIT) function.

     Implementation Approach

The Twiyubakire-Engage Project applies a participatory, inclusive, and evidence-based approach grounded in social accountability to strengthen citizen voice and accountability in Rwanda’s agricultural governance. It empowers smallholder farmers and other community members to generate and use evidence on agricultural service delivery to influence district planning, budgeting, and policy processes. Implementation follows a collaborative, competency-based model that leverages CCOAIB’s civil society network and specialized service providers to support systematic evidence generation and advocacy. Evidence generation and advocacy activities include:

·       Conducting community scorecards, field studies, and assessments to gather on-site data.

·       Developing position papers, case studies, and policy briefs, and disseminating them through multiple channels.

·       Organizing dialogues, roundtables, breakfast meetings, technical and advocacy meetings, including leveraging existing spaces such as Technical Working Committees.

·       Hosting district-level meetings and one-on-one advocacy sessions to engage decision-makers.

·       Developing concise advocacy briefs to communicate key findings and actionable recommendations from studies and assessments conducted.

     Geographic Scope and Beneficiaries

Twiyubakire-Engage is piloted in four predominantly agrarian districts: Muhanga, Nyaruguru, Nyamagabe (Southern Province), and Gatsibo (Eastern Province), covering 23 Sectors (5 in Muhanga, 5 in Nyamagabe, 7 in Nyaruguru, and 6 in Gatsibo). The project primarily targets smallholder farmers, with a particular emphasis on women, youth, and persons with disabilities, while secondary beneficiaries include farmer cooperatives, local CSOs, district authorities, and national agricultural institutions. The project areas are characterized by high dependence on agriculture and limited citizen participation in District planning and budgeting processes. The latter engages 471 Food Basket Sites (FoBaSi) covering 15,688 hectares and reaching 66,288 farmers across the four districts:

·       Gatsibo: 150 FoBaSi sites, 6,912 ha, 17,012 farmers (Kabarore, Gitoki, Kiziguro, Ngarama, Remera, Rwimbogo);

·       Muhanga: 38 FoBaSi sites, 991 ha, 8,956 farmers (Nyamabuye, Shyogwe, Kabacuzi, Cyeza, Kiyumba);

·       Nyamagabe: 129 FoBaSi sites, 3,574 ha, 18,158 farmers (Gatare, Kamegeri, Buruhukiro, Cyanika, Mugano);

·       Nyaruguru: 154 FoBaSi sites, 4,210 ha, 22,162 farmers (Ngera, Ngoma, Nyagisozi, Cyahinda, Rusenge, Kibeho, Mata).

     Project Expected Results

§   Improved citizen consultations and feedback on priority needs in agriculture services.

§  Alignment of Imihigo commitments to District Development Strategies (DDS) is monitored to ensure consistent planning and budgeting in agriculture.

§  Evidence generated to improve district-level planning and budgeting for national advocacy.

§  Citizens strengthened to generate evidence, monitor, and hold local leaders accountable.

§  Evidence on districts’ readiness to assume responsibility for the SSIT function was generated and used to engage key stakeholders in fast-tracking decentralization.

§  Evidence on opportunities, gaps, and challenges in decentralizing the SSIT function was generated at the central government level and used to engage decision makers to fast-track the process.