Blog Women-led seed innovation: PABRA boosts Emma’s high-iron bean expansion in Rwanda
Driven by passion, Rwandan entrepreneur Emma Uwera has grown her high-iron bean business in Eastern Province and beyond, with Sall Foundation and Global Affairs Canada support, improving farmer access, nutrition, and incomes through better seeds and irrigation.
If you take a moment to sit with Emma Uwera, you will quickly discover two things: her unwavering love for beans and her dedication to helping others cultivate them. Behind this passion lies a narrative of collaboration, opportunity, and remarkable change, largely supported by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT through the Pan-Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) and the Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB). “Beans,” she chuckles, “I really love beans.” It’s a sentiment that might surprise many, but for Emma, beans are woven into the very fabric of her existence as a scientist, a mother, a businesswoman, and a changemaker - not just in her own Rwamagana District, but throughout Rwanda's Eastern Province and beyond.
Learn more about Emma's interventions in this short video:
As a young graduate working in RAB’s bean program in 2011, Emma saw first-hand the central role beans play in the diets and incomes of Rwandan families. Like countless fresh graduates, she was bursting with ambition, yet uncertain about the direction it would take her. It was during her time at RAB that she recognized the vital role beans play in the diets of Rwandan families and for rural women, who rely on this crop for both sustenance and income. However, these women faced significant obstacles, lacking access to improved seeds, agronomic knowledge, and market opportunities.
“They loved beans,” Emma reflects, “but they didn’t know which varieties to plant or where to acquire quality seeds. Many managed to grow just enough for their families.”
Those observations shaped her decision to move beyond research and into enterprise. In 2018 she invested $7,500 USD to establish her own seed business registered as I and J Harvest Ltd. What began modestly, with 12 tons of seed production in 2018, has grown steadily to over 100 tons by 2025. However, she's encountered regular hurdles, particularly from climate variability like frequent droughts, which have impacted her bean and maize production. These challenges have sparked her interest in exploring climate mitigation strategies, including irrigation solutions.
