(London/Kigali) – Rwanda’s growing horticulture sector is strengthening its presence in the United Kingdom, with the UK identified by Rwanda’s National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) as the country’s top export market for horticultural products this year.

On 25 September 2026, the Rwandan High Commissioner to the UK, H.E. Johnston Busingye, as well as several Rwandan women entrepreneurs in fresh produce and a NAEB representative are attending the Fresh Produce Consortium (FPC) Fresh Awards in London, bringing Rwanda’s fresh produce sector into one of the UK’s leading industry gatherings.

“Rwanda’s participation in the FPC Fresh Awards reflects the growing strength and ambition of our horticulture sector and the importance of the United Kingdom as a market for Rwandan produce. We are particularly pleased to see Rwandan women entrepreneurs building relationships with UK buyers and showcasing the quality of what Rwanda has to offer. Expanding these commercial partnerships creates opportunities not only for businesses, but also for jobs, livelihoods and greater participation of women and young people across our agricultural value chains.” Johnston Busingye, High Commissioner of Rwanda to the United Kingdom

The delegation’s participation provides an opportunity for Rwandan women-led businesses to raise their profile among UK fresh produce stakeholders and build commercial relationships with supermarket chains, importers, distributors and other potential buyers through this UK FPC event.

This participation is organized as part of the Value-added Initiative to Boost Employment (VIBE) Programme, which is co-implemented by TradeMark Africa and the International Trade Centre, in partnership with Mastercard Foundation. 

Under the VIBE Programme for women-led businesses, ITC SheTrades, in collaboration with NAEB and the SheTrades Rwanda Hub, hosted by the Private Sector Federation – Specialized Cluster, supports Rwandan women entrepreneurs in the fresh horticulture and processed agrifood sector to access target markets, including the UK, the European Union and Middle East region, through a variety of market access activities. 

The Programme’s market-access activities are already translating into new commercial opportunities.

Earlier this year, ITC organized the SheTrades Rwanda Trade Mission, bringing nine buyers from Europe and the Middle East to Kigali. The buyers held business-to-business meetings and visited companies led by Rwandan women entrepreneurs in the fresh produce and processed agrifood sectors.

The trade mission created tangible trade impacts. One of the participants, Selly Faith Ltd, secured a new client and has since shipped over French beans to the UK with an estimated value of over 80,000 GBP to date within a 10-week period. 

Expanding international market opportunities for women-led businesses generates wider economic benefits, supporting job creation and livelihoods for young women and other workers across agricultural value chains.

The VIBE Programme will continue this market-access work in October, when 15 Rwandan women-led fresh produce businesses are set to exhibit at Fruit Attraction in Madrid, Spain, from 6 – 8 October 2026.