Rwanda releases 15 new beans varieties

On January 15 2010, Rwanda scientists at the Institut de Sciences Agronomiques du Rwanda (ISAR) released 15 new bean varieties that are going to benefit thousands of farmers in the central and east African region.

Rwanda is one of Africa’s most densely populated nations. It relies on beans as the main staple food, source of protein and a large part of calories.

Beans in Rwanda are consumed on a daily basis by almost everybody. The very poor can eat them alone. Luckily beans, described as a ‘poor mans’ meat’ and a second-class protein, can be the sole source of protein with very little or no first class protein (animal) supplement.

That is why Rwandans, who are said to be the highest consumers of beans in the world at 50-60kgs kgs per capita (per person per year), grow strong and healthy by eating only beans as a source of protein.

They eat the leaf, as a vegetable, the grain for lunch and dinner while the kids eat them in the morning before they go to school. It is said that in other countries when you are eating a meal, you eat more Irish or sweet potatoes than beans at a meal, but in Rwanda, the beans per meal are more than the other food.

As such, Rwanda has one of the highest diversity of beans in Africa. It has so much variety in terms of color, types-bush beans and climbing beans as well as Rwanda farmers have immense knowledge on beans.

For instance according to Augustine Musoni, a bean breeder with ISAR, since the year 2000-2010, Rwanda in partnership with CIAT has developed 35 beans varieties.

They have thus managed to get high yielding, disease resistant and climate change tolerant beans that can easily grow elsewhere in the region. But also Rwanda, has a mandate to breed for climbing beans in the region under CIAT.
In Rwanda beans are grown in especially the northern region, Ruhengere about 2 hours ride from Kigali, Kirambo and Musanze in Bulera district.

With its high population and declining land size, climbing beans allow maximum use of limited land, and are comparable to having skyscrapers in cities.

Women and Beans

Beans are described as a woman’s crop. They plant, cultivate, harvest, store, sell, cook and in Rwanda they are very much involved in selection of bean varieties developed by plant breeders.

Rwanda farmers’ experience in growing beans is excellent, actually Rwandan women could be the most experienced about beans in the world, with a lot of knowledge the ladies are said to know their beans very well.

They can manipulate components in different varieties and can tell which beans can grow in a particular type of soil and season. According to Rwanda beans breeders, they have a connection with Rwandan women in beans.

The breeders cannot release a variety until they get confirmation from women. They touch them, cook and taste them in the participatory variety bean selection.

“When we are breeding we get women selecting the varieties. They have traditional expertise, they will look at the seed in their hands and just say this variety can not be grown here or it will not do well,” said Musoni.

But women are also used to give beans names in Rwanda, for in this east African country, farmers select the names for the beans. The beans bear scientific names but also given local names.

One of the varieties released on January 15th was CAB 2 – scientific name, Gasirida, local name after a woman farmer Cansilde.  Rwanda, in Africa has the most variety of colors of beans.

The women also name some beans after their colors, shape- ‘red kidney’, or other characteristics like weight, ‘coltan’ because they are heavy and fetch more money just as coltan.

Jacqueline Mujawamariya 31 years old has spent many years growing, tending, eating and selling beans. She eats beans with Irish potatoes and posho and does not remember that many days when she had a meal with no beans.

As a bean farmer and trader, she has bought a calf from her beans proceeds. She described the climbing beans –as ‘sweet’ compared to bush beans. But also the climbing beans technology –is comparable to the Jack and the beanstalk tree, which is extremely useful where land pressure is soaring and the need for higher yields is very intense.

CIAT and Beans

The partnership between the Centre for International Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Pan-Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) and Rwanda’s ISAR has developed improved climbing beans that slink up stakes two meters high- tripling, and even quadrupling yields.

These beans require stakes and relatively more labor, but they give back assisting in soil nitrogen fixing, as well as reduction of soil erosion in sloping areas that experience heavy rain.

In Rwanda, the immediate pay off from the high yields of climbing types has catalyzed farmers’ adoption of soil fertility improvements, such as organic amendments and the use of agro forestry. This has led to better soil conservation and more sustainable agro-ecosystems for areas.

According to Dr. Robin Buruchara, Africa regional Coordinator CIAT, the national programmes like ISAR in Rwanda, or Kawanda Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) in Uganda, are given lines for breeding populations that they make adaptable to the needs of the country.

The ‘marker assistance selection’, which is basically conventional technology is used to breed varieties that are selected by farmers.

CIAT, the custodian of beans varieties, however, does not allow the varieties to be sold after being bred even after the country program adds value because they are a ‘public good’.
In Rwanda, the beans climbers are good at nitrogen fixing and cereals are recommended to be grown after the beans so that they benefit from the nutrient rich soils.