By Lawrence Paganga
A couple from the Bahamas moved to Rwanda in 2020 and has now settled concentrating on its farming business, mainly focusing on horticulture, especially yellow pepper.
Felecia and Wayne Belazia are now farming in the Masaka district in the capital, Kigali, where they grow vegetables, including cabbage, onions, yellow pepper, papaya, spinach, Chinese cabbage, tomatoes, and cauliflower.
Papayas are only grown in tropical climates.
However, yellow pepper, which is fairly new in Rwanda, is the crop they are mostly focusing on at the farm.
“I discovered Rwanda after I came for a visit. I was invited by someone who already lived here, and was amazed by the beauty of the city (Kigali),” Wayne said.
“Rwanda is a beautiful country. It’s a peaceful country. That is why we decided we are going to make a move here.”
After staying briefly in Kigali, the couple relocated to Masaka.
“We then came to Masaka and love the place. We wanted to run a business and agriculture made a lot of sense. We love being outdoors, we love working when the birds are singing.”
Before relocating to Rwanda the farming couple used to work in the medical field in the US, where they met, before moving to the Bahamas.
Wayne said they were concentrating on yellow pepper and the farm manager, who studied crop production in Israel, was working on finding market for the crop.
“It is a win/win situation and we are working on a market plan. Yellow pepper is a fairly new crop in Rwanda. We have two greenhouses and constructing two more for the crop. We are looking for different buyers. However, we have been more on the production side, building structures.”
Wayne also urged potential farmers in the US or Europe not to hesitate if they want to relocate and resettle in Africa.
“If you want to move to Africa, do it, don’t hesitate. Do it! But there is a need for a plan unless you are retired. It makes sense to start a business when you have relocated because you are contributing to the country, and providing jobs for young professionals.
Besides horticulture, the couple wants to diverse into rabbit and pig production and structures for rearing the animals have already been constructed.
