This year, three Rwandan coffee cooperatives, Buhanga, Kigembe and Nyampinga, received their first financing from Progreso, helping them strengthen their businesses and expand their market opportunities. For Buhanga and Kigembe, this support contributed to an important step: completing their first international coffee exports, with shipments reaching buyers in the United Kingdom. The three cooperatives are part of a wider group of six Rwandan cooperatives supported by Progreso, representing more than 3,600 farmers.
From access to finance to access to markets
For coffee cooperatives, fulfilling international orders requires more than producing high-quality coffee. They need working capital to purchase coffee from farmers, cover processing and logistics costs, and meet buyers’ quality and documentation requirements before receiving payment for their exports. Access to finance helps bridge this gap, enabling cooperatives to purchase coffee from their members, fulfil orders and explore new markets.
The results are becoming visible in the cooperatives’ business performance. Kigembe has nearly doubled its sales compared with 2025, while Buhanga has strengthened its financial position. Nyampinga, meanwhile, has expanded its international exports, increasing shipments from one container in 2023 to three in 2026.
Better market access, better returns for farmers
Access to international markets has also enabled Buhanga and Kigembe to offer farmers higher prices for their coffee. In 2026, payments to farmers increased from USD 0.45 to USD 0.74 per kilogram of red cherries compared with the previous year. For farmers, higher payments can make a tangible difference to household incomes and the ability to invest in their families and farms.
Esperance Nyiransabimana, a coffee farmer supplying Kigembe Cooperative, increased the volume of red cherries she delivered to the cooperative’s coffee washing station from 2,257 kilograms in 2024 to 4,000 kilograms in 2025. “I never expected that coffee from my farm would be appreciated by people in Britain,” she explained.
Her experience illustrates how stronger cooperatives and access to new markets can create opportunities for farmers to grow their production and benefit from the coffee they cultivate.
A foundation for continued growth
For Progreso, these first three financing operations in Rwanda represent an important step in building relationships with cooperatives and demonstrating what access to finance can enable. All three loans have been repaid in full, providing a positive foundation for continued collaboration. By combining access to finance with stronger market connections, Progreso aims to help cooperatives develop their businesses, reach new buyers and create lasting opportunities for the farmers they represent.
