JICA Rwanda Office

Addressing the issue of capacity building

Rwanda has set an ambition development goal to be a middle income country by 2020. This requires a structural shift of the economy through a greater market orientation of agriculture and expansion of non-agricultural sectors. To respond to this ambition the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal resources set up a strategic plan for agriculture transformation (PSTA II) in which The fourth programme of this important strategy is directed at strengthening the public sector’s capacity to support the sector’s development and at improving the policies that guide actions by producers and entrepreneurs.

The overall objective is to strengthen the institutional framework through which the Public sector supports agricultural development. This involves actions in a number of areas, including capacity building; redefining the roles of some institutions and personnel; improving management information systems and coordination mechanisms within the sector, including between the Centre and the Districts; strengthening the policy and regulatory framework; providing a better statistical and Informational base for public policy decisions; making better use of information and communication technologies; and instituting procedures to ensure that the decentralization programme functions well so that local-level actors are full participants in decision making and programme implementation. Enhancing public servant capacity will be essential to manage this complex transition and since people are the public sector greatest assets, effective human resources management is vital.

The agriculture sector is one of main sector that receive JICA support in terms of capacity building , short and long term trainings as well as institutional capacity development as it has been highlighted above.