Rwandan Coffee is on the Move...

Do you drink coffee? Good. I am sure most of you drink coffee or, like myself, used to drink coffee. Now I do not drink coffee, but I still enjoy the coffee aroma.

But, do you know how coffee is made? .... I did not think so. Not many people know how coffee is made. I mean what the coffee tree looks like and how the coffee cherries are turning to the coffee that we are drinking.

Oh well... If you did not know, like me, here is a quick and dirty rundown on how the coffee is made.

This is a coffee tree, a small one. [left] It bears coffee cherries like in the picutre. [middle] Right off the coffee tree, they are called "coffee cherries." [right] They are not coffee beans... yet.

Once they are ripe, they are taken off the tree and brought to a washing station or a drying station. There are primarily two ways to peel the skins and remove sweet liquids from the coffee beans. They are the wet treatment and the dry treatment. I am told that the wet treatment produces better coffee beans.

On August 12th, I visited a washing station in Kibungo or now known as Ngoma, Eastern Province, where the wet treatment is used. Unfortunately, it was the off-season, so I could not see the real process in action. But it was worthwhile. So I will talk about the coffee production using the wet treatment. The coffee beans that went through the wet treatment are normally turning to gourmet or specialty coffee.

The farmers have to carry the cherries to the washing station within 4 hours. Otherwise, the coffee value drops sharply. (I have not found out the reasons yet.) So farmers use all kinds of methods to carry the cherries in time to the station. Many use bicycles or carry on their heads.

Once the coffee cherries arrive at the washing station, they are poured into a tank where the dirts are washed. Then they will flow into a machine that will peel the skins and sweet liquids (called "mucilage") that cover the coffee beans inside. The machine also sorts out the coffee beans by sizes. Good coffee beans are well sorted with consistent sizes.

Once the coffee cherries are peeled off and the liquids are washed off, they are called "coffee parchments." These coffee parchments flow into several tanks, sorted by sizes, where they are stored for two days floating in the water. This process is called "fermentation" and the mucilages are more thoroughly washed off in the water.

[<= Fermentation tanks]

After the fermentation, the coffee parchments will flow into a bigger tank and are washed again for the final cleaning for another day.

Then, the coffee parchments are taken out of the washing tank and brought to drying decks in the shade. These decks are called "pre-drying" decks and here the coffee parchments are displayed over plastic sheets so that the water may be dried and/or dripped off the coffee parchments. This takes another day.

Then, the coffee parchments are placed on the regular drying decks to be dried for 14 days in the sun.

[=> A big tank for final cleaning and drying decks over the washing tank]

All in all, thus, it takes 18 days from the time the cheeries arrive and are born again to dried coffee parchments. Please note, however, they are not coffee beans yet.

These dried coffee parchments are collected into bags and stored until September when active coffee trading takes place. In Rwanda, the coffee cherries are collected by the farmers during April through June during the rainy season. Once it enters the dry season, coffee trees do not produce cherries any more. The rest of the year is the time of rest for the tree and also for the farmers. (Thus, the coffee farmers usually get involved in other economic activities.)
[A sample bag of parchments]

In September or so, the coffee parchments are processed to remove the stuff that is surrounding the coffee beans. Once the outer stuff is removed, finally coffee beans are produced. These beans are called "green coffee beans." They indeed look light green.

[=> These parchments value approximately $180,000.]

These green beans are sold to a coffee roasting house or a trading company that collect the coffee parchments to sell in bulk to the roasting house. These green beans are roasted according to the specific requests of the coffee distributers and/or the end-users, like Starbucks. Depending on how the roasting has been processed, the coffee would taste completely different even with the same coffee green beans. Of course, the roasted coffee may be ground and brewed, ready to be sipped and enjoyed. Hmmm.... Ahhhh.....

As a banker, I could not resist the urge to find out about the financial aspect of the coffee production cycle. The coffee cherries are sold to a washing station at RWF120 per kg, pretty cheap. The farmers are getting paid by the washing station when the sale takes place. Coffee farmers usually belong to a cooperative that usually owns a washing station. The one I visited was owned by a cooperative that has 125 members.

The coffee cherries will lose the weights as their skins are peeled and the mucilages are removed. After the parchments are removed, 5 kgs of coffee cherries will shrink to 1 kg of dried green beans. So to produce 1 kg of green beans, 5 kgs of coffee cherries are required or approximately RWF600 or a little more than US$1.00. But this 1 kg of green beans will be sold to the roasting house at approximately $3.50, a three-times higher price than the cost. These green bean price fluctuates widely depending on the weather and the harvet yields. Sometimes, Rwandan coffee beans could sell at $50 per kg when there is severe shortage of supply, I was told, because it is a gourmet coffee.

The cooperative and the washing station then will cover all the processing costs, facility depreciation and maintenance costs, administrative staff expense, finance charges for using a credit facility to make prompt payment to the coffee farmers etc. Whatever is left over will then be distributed to the coffee farmers as profit.

A one kilo gram of green beans will turn into a lot of coffee.. hundreds of cups of coffee. Let us suppose that one kilo gram of coffee beans will produce only 100 cups of coffee and each cup costs only $1.50. Remember Rwandan coffee is a specialty coffee and it more expensive than regular coffee, but for the sake of argument... In reality, how much do you pay for a cup of coffee? 1 dollar? 2 dollars? 3 dollars? Sometimes more than 5 dollars at Starbuck's? Doesn't it sound like a rip-off! It may be...

But you also have to bear in mind the freight, the insurance, the storage cost, the administrative expense, the packaging cost, the marketing expense, a mark-up profit etc. throughout the chain of distribution until it is finally delivered to you through a coffee shop or a supermarket.

Do you love coffee? Try Rwandan coffee. It is good. You can even order via internet. It has been gaining more popularity since Starbuck's owns a coffee farm here in Rwanda and uses Rwandan coffee partly for its own gourmet coffee. Try it. It is good. - Jeffrey

Feeding Hope in Jesus' Name... in North Korea

The Christianity Today had an article about Christian outreach to the people of North Korea (DPRK) to save millions from dying of starvation.


Rogue regime ... Unreliable distribution of food aid ... Wet noodles ... Malnutrition ... Nominal four churches in the entire country... One million troops... Nuclear explosion... Missile tests ... No electricity in the capital city ... Persistent cover-up of the truth ... Propaganda ...


I think you will find the article of interest and I trust you will find a ray of hope in this country but only in Christ who will eventually deliver His pepple out of this unbelievable darkness.


Please click below for the article.


http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2009/august/27.48.html

- Jeffrey

Dairy Farmers in Rwanda...

I had an opportunity to visit dairy farmers in Nyagatare on August 11th with a couple of people from Rwanda Development Bank (BRD). BRD is a government-owned bank focusing on the development of the Rwanda's infrastructure. UOB signed an MoU with BRD for business cooperation in helping the rural farmers and this field trip was the first step towards the goal.

[Some cows of a farmer who wants to buy 15 more]

We met with Augustine, the Chairman of the Union of 19 cooperatives for cattle farmers, and his staff, Fred and Sylvia. The union's membership totals more than 4,000 in Nyagatare District only.

Later we visited a cattle farmer that currently has 12 cows and desires to buy 15 more. It was the BRD's site visitation for their loan request. We found that the farmer was not ready to raise additional 15. The farmer agreed.

[=>The milk storage tank at a milk collection center]

Each dairy cow produces 20-40 litres of milk each day. The farmers milk their cows twice a day: 4AM and 4PM. This milk is brought to one of the milk collection centers and stored into a chilled tank with preliminary filtering. Then this milk is transported to a dairy for pasteurizing or to an agregator who collects the milk and sell it in bulk to a dairy.

[<= Milk transport truck]

The raw milk is sold by farmers at RWF150 (less than 25 cents) per liter. This raw milk price goes up to RWF800-1,000 per liter at the retail store.

While we were visiting a milk collection center, one farmer arrived on his bike with a 40-liter container in the back. When measured, the container had 20 liters of milk. It translates to RWF3,000 in value or RWF6,000 per day. (Remember that they are milking twice a day) I was told that the farmer will net the sales at 70% of the sales price. So the net profit will be RWF4,200 per day or approximately $8.00 per day. This translates into $240 a month and $2,900 a year. Assuming a family of 7, this farmer's income is approximately the same as the national per capita income of a little less than $400. The assumption is that the farmer does not do anything else, but normally farmers are engaged in other economic activities, such as growing other animals or vegetables for their own consumption or for sale. So most likely this particular farmer is better off than the average household in Rwanda.

[The only dairy in Nyagatare still under installation]

Each dairy cow a farmer buys should be at least six month pregnant so that the farmer may be able to produce milk soon after the purchase. Each cow is costing RWF500,000 to 1 million, or $900 to $1,800, depending on the breed and the health. This price is far higher than traditional cows. Nonetheless, each dairy cow returns the farmer's original investment within 4 to 8 months, plus another cow in three months. Not bad. That is why the Rwandan government is promoting the dairy cows in the Eastern Province where the land is flat and the pasture is wide. The business is good, but it is a tough business, too, since the farmers have to get up early to milk the cow and take good care of them.

It was a wonderful experience. - Jeffrey

Summer Interns from the U.S.

During the summer, we have had three summer interns from the U.S. They are Jackie, Jinho and Seung Chul.

Jackie finished her internship early July and has gone back to the states. She finished her sophomore year and spent two months with us. She worked on marketing and webpage projects. As a young college student, she was mature and participated in all activities with enthusiasm. She wants to go to a law school after graduating from the college. She desires to help the poor in the developing countries later. Jackie felt a lot more comfortable with foreign living after her life in Rwanda. It was very encouraging to see a young lady like Jackie think globally and develop into a global person in this global age. [Jackie making dirt bricks on an Umuganda Day]

Jinho finished his internship on August 7th. He had worked with us for two months. He is a graduate student at Columbia University, New York. He is a Korean student. He has helped us with marketing reports for each EBU, but he has helped me tremendously in putting together many policies and business continuity program. He was fast and highly productive. He even helped me over the weekend. Jinho traveled to Tanzania on a summer mission before he started his master's program in the U.S. and liked Africa very much. Later, he desires to help the poor hopefully through clean and renewable energy and micro enterprise development. He was a godly young man and it was a blessing to have him on our team even for a while.

[Jinho - left and Seung Chul - right]

Seung Chul ("Chul") is an interesting guy. He graduated from the Kellogg School of Business with an MBA degree this year. But he also has a master's degree in political studies. He is a third-generation Korean Japanese, living in Tokyo, Japan. He worked for UNESCO in Korea and for Red Cross International in Fiji and Myanmar. His previous job before the MBA program was with Bain & Company in Tokyo. He will go back to Bain & Company and work there for at least two more years. Amazingly, he has visited approximately 50 countries. Wow... for his age of 37. Chul is interested in social enterprise. He started his post-MBA internship on August 3rd and will continue until the middle of September. So far, he has finished a feasibility study report on mobile branch with impressive work quality, and is now working on developing procedural manual for business continuity program. He will surely bring good value to the bank while he will be with us for six weeks. He started his African tour from Kenya to Uganda before he arrived in Rwanda. After his internship with UOB, he plans to visit Malawi and South Africa. He plans to meet his wife in Johannesberg before he goes back to Japan. What a global person he is!

God clearly works through people. He leads His people to meet each other in His time and by connecting them He creates synergistic value for His Kingdom. It is a great blessing to be able to meet so many people with so diverse experiences and background.

These interns may be inexperienced in banking and micro finance, but they bring tremendous value to an institution like us, because they understand the instructions clearly and know the expectations. At the end, they produce what is expected. And fast. It is great joy to work with them.

Lord, may Your Kingdom advance through Your people in a way beyond our imagination! - Jeffrey

Gecko... is a Friend to Us

Gecko is well known to many Americans as the mascot for GEICO, an insurance company. I would guess that a gecko was chosen because the company name GEICO sounds similar to Gecko.

In Rwanda, geckos are friends to people because they eat bugs at their homes.

At our place, there are two geckos: a small one and another tiny one. They freely move around the house primarily on the walls. Initially, Kristin was freightened when she found one on a wall and she tried to kill it instantly. At that time, we had a guest visiting with us and he told us that geckos are friends to us. They do not bother us and they eat bugs. So Kristin cautiously and skeptically let the gecko get away.

We have since seen the gecko on and off. These days, we even do not think of them any more, but at first we just did not feel comfortable when it was on the ceiling upside down right over our dining table.

We found another tiny one later. Sometimes we enjoy watching it move up and down on the wall, hoping that they will catch all the bugs that are living with us in the house. Part of fun living in this country. - Jeffrey

The Story of Athanase Mwiseneza

Athanase MWISENEZA: From selling few eggs to becoming a successful businessperson.

In just twelve years, Athanase has been able to move from selling just a few eggs every day to owning his own retail shop in his own building. Athanase heard about Urwego Opportunity Bank (Then Urwego Community Banking) through the church his mother was attending.

Athanase lives in the Eastern Province, Kayonza sector in Mukarange cell. He had only US$2 when he joined a UOB Trust Group, and he had no vision for a prosperous future. With an initial loan of just $27, Athanase began by selling a few eggs every day in the local market. With the profits he made, Athanase decided to change his business strategy, and he started a small retail shop under a tree by the roadside. With additional profits, he was able to build his own commercial retail building. He then asked the government agency in charge of supplying water to run water pipes into the building so he could sell tap water to community members. Now he sells tap water to the members of his community and makes profit of more than $73 per month.

Athanase was also able to install electricity. Because he is among the few who have access to electricity in his neighborhood, he developed a new business. Athanase started charging neighbors’ cell phones. At the present, Athanase gets over 45 customers per day and makes total monthly profit of about $210 just by charging cell phones.

From the profits made, and a village phone loan from UOB, he bought two public telephones which community members can use to call friends and relatives. He charges them few cents per unit.

In his community, Athanase is now highly respected and well known.

While he once had no house, Athanase now owns three buildings - his own home, a house he rents out and his business retail store.

Before he joined the UOB Trust Group, he was not in a position to get married, since African weddings are very expensive. Now he is a proud father and husband.

Athanase says, “As a result of joining the Opportunity Trust group, I was able to build my Business house, my own home, met my wedding requirements and now I am married. I have three children two of whom have started school and I take care of them with no difficulties. I am successful, but it all was made possible because of joining the UOB Trust Group.” Athanase goes on to say, “I have gained many friends – my fellow Trust group members, customers and Urwego staff members. I would not have met them had it not been Urwego Opportunity Bank coming to us.”

He says that his prayers are full of praise rather than asking God for food or tuition for his children. His relationship with God is based on love. In addition, Athanase is a contributing member of his church through offerings and tithes and through other financial and non-financial contributions.

Athanase is planning to build a local commercial house that will be let to business people and in turn generate income from rent. Once he has completed repayment of the current loan, he hopes to take out another larger loan.

I praise the Lord who has been working in the life of Athanase. May there be more Athanases in Rwanda! - Jeffrey

EXPO 2009 in Kigali

[The Expo entrance........................ The Expo ground .................... One of the handmade products]

Currently, an international trade fair is taking place in Kigali. It started on July 30th and will last until August 10th. It was reported that 419 exhibitors from 10 countries are participating in the Fair.

Kristin and I took time today, Sunday August 2nd, to visit the Expo. We paid a little less than $1.00 per person to enter and another $1.00 for the parking.

There were many booths, but the items were mostly household goods, such as food, clothing, souvenirs, shoes, and some light industrial goods. The booths in the Import Section were displaying better quality goods than the Rwanda Section. That leaves Rwanda with some room for improvement. Many of Rwandan vendors were cooperatives. These cooperatives should find good momentum to develop into enterprises.

The scale of this year's 12th Expo was quite small to be called International Trade Fair, but it is improving. They are planning to build a new trade fair ground that is six times larger than the current location. I was envisioning an International Trade Fair in Rwanda that is attracting many IT vendors and buyers who are actively placing orders and buying goods not just for a cheap price but for the quality and technology. Would it be possible in 10 years or 20 years? I suppose it depends on God's plan to be done in His time.

I was sincerely hoping and praying that Rwanda will become the African tiger nation. Oh Lord, I pray that You bless Rwanda and the people of Rwanda so that they all may turn to You and draw near You in their plans and their lives. May your name be glorified! - Jeffrey

UOB Leadership Retreat

[Mission in Kinyarwanda...... Daniel Ryumugabe, Transformation Manager...... My ministry partners in action at UOB]

On July 24, 25 and 26, we held a Leadership Retreat at Bethanie Center righy by the Lake Kivu. A total of 65 officers of UOB attended.

We worshiped our faithful God with praise and prayer, but we also learned Servant/Situational Leadership, Effective Communication, Teamwork, Transformation Plan, Vision, Mission, Values and Business Performance Review/Business Plan.

I had the privilege of leading the sessions about Servant/Situational Leadership, Effective Communication and Teamwork while executive management discussed the business session and Transformaton Impact Manager discussed the rest.

We picked the topics in hopes to enhance our teamwork and communication.

At the end, the officers chose T.E.A.M. (Together Everyone Achieves More) and "None of us is as smart as all of us" as the bank's slogans. We ended our official session with a chanting of "Team Yesu" and "Team UOB." We came back to Kigali with excitement and boosted spirit.

The enhanced teamwork showed a fruit immediately. Last week was the end of July. The month-end is a hectic time for closing. It is even more so with UOB because of the unique nature of the loan disbursement process for the poor. Four teams have to work very closely, but traditionally one of the teams has been dragging the process.

Last week, it was not the case. The dragging team also stepped up and closed all disbursements on time. Actually, they finished them all even earlier than usual. Director of Credit sent me an e-mail filled with praise and gratitude, looking forward to a great hope for the future.

Thank you, Jesus, for your good and faithful guidance! We praise your name! May this enhanced teamwork produce more efficient and synergistic delivery of "your love in action" to the poor!

- Jeffrey

The Story of Esperance MUKASEKURU...

Esperance Mukasekuru is a successful weaver who lives in Ngoma district, Kibungo sector and Karenge cell. She buys used bed sheets and bed covers and then skillfully weaves colorful drawings into them, increasing their value and thereby allowing her to profit from their resale. Esperance joined UOB in 2000 and received US$35 as an initial loan. She used this loan to buy threads for making and embroidering these bedcovers, bed sheets, and hand -made table mats which she sells to the community.

On account of her good performance in the loan cycle as well as her business’s success, Esperance received a larger loan during the next loan cycle.

In 2001, just one year after joining one of UOB’s trust groups, her husband, who worked as a driver, had a car accident and broke his arm. Her husband’s recovery took two years. During that time, Esperance took up all the responsibilities of supporting her family using the revenues from her business. For example, the windows of their house had had no glasses in them, but during this time, Esperance fixed glass into the window frames. Each successive cycle, Esperance secured a larger loan than the previous one.

UOB teaches its clients to save, and their savings act as an incentive to get a bigger loan the next loan cycle. Consequently, Esperance practiced saving until she was able to get a loan of US $ 1,232. She used this loan to buy a photocopying machine and a computer. With this machine and computer, she opened a new business. She makes copies of different documents for community members who need this service. In return, they pay her for her service. Because she lives near university premises, she photocopies handouts for different students who then pay her according to the size of their documents. For those students who do not have computers or time to type their theses, she charges them some money to type them. From this new business, Esperance makes over US $ 143 per month.

From her profits, Esperance was able to meet the needs of her six children as well as the seven orphans that stay at her house, such as providing them food and paying school fees. From Esperance’s perspective, she has 13 children under her care. Using her business, she has been able to send all her children to school. Four are studying at university, six are in secondary School, and two are in primary school. The remaining daughter received a scholarship to attend university in South Africa.

Once Esperance realized the success of her business, she decided to more fully and deeply impact her community by training community women in weaving. Therefore, she formed a group of five underprivileged women who had no businesses of their own to generate income and taught them how to knit bed covers, sheets, and tablemats as well as to make baskets and bags. The verandah of her house served as a class room. The group turned into an association, and the women are now earning a good amount of money and can provide for their families instead of waiting for a well-wisher to give them relief.

Esperance says that joining UOB helped her not only learn how to work but also gain leadership skills. In 2004, she was elected president of the trust group of which she is a member. Further, when Esperance attended a women’s meeting at the district level, the assembly wanted to elect a president. After learning that she is a president of a trust group, almost everyone voted for her. She then was elected the President of District Women’s Guarantee Fund.

Esperance says that joining UOB has not only benefited her in terms of economic progress but that being a member of a trust group has enhanced her relationship with God and others. She also says the fellowship with her group members – reading the Bible and praying before each meeting – has changed her life by increasing her love for others.

In addition, on account of the time that she and her group members have spent in prayer together, they have cultivated a love for one another. For example, one of Esperance’s fellow trust group members lost her husband to suicide. Because of the love and respect the group members shared, the other group members decided to pay the outstanding balance of her loan. They frequently visited her during this difficult time and supported her in every way possible.

Esperance’s future plan is to buy a printer and further expand her business. The printer costs approximately US$2,143.

May the faithful Lord continue to hold her hands in her life journey and make many Esperance stories in the lives of Rwanda! - Jeffrey

Independence Day... Liberation Day

[From top to bottom, left to right: Marching band and body section; "Kwibohora"; Well trained solidiers marching; Ethiopian Prime Minister Zenawi; Ugandan President Museveni; Rwandan President Kagame; Children singing a song of unity]

In Rwanda, July 1st is the Independence Day. It is the day to commemorate the independence from the Belgian colony in 1962. It must have been a meaningful day then, but not so much these days. Many people work and many business are open for business.

But not so on the day of July 4th. All businesses are closed. It is the Liberation Day.

Yeap! It is the Fourth of July, America!

This is the day that Rwandans commemorate the liberation from the genocide.

It is the official day when the RFP (Rwandan Patriotic Front) pushed the Hutu extremists or Interhwame out of Rwanda, mostly into the DR Congo's jungle and declared the victory since the genocide broke out on April 7th, 1994. Rwanda was liberated from the genocide in about 89 days and about one million lives literally slaughtered.

Today, I attended the 15th Independence Day Ceremony along with tens of thousands of Rwandans and distinguished guests. At this ceremony, Rwandan President Paul Kagame conferred the country's extreme honor medals (URUTI) to the current President of Uganda Museveni and the current Prime Minister of Ethiopia Zenawi for their contribution to the process of Rwanda's liberation in 1994. Tanzania's late president Nyerere's wife was also awarded a plaque of appreciation for the former president's contribution.

The venue was Amahoro Stadium. Amahoro means "peace" in Kinyarwanda. It symbolizes the strong desire of the people of Rwanda in their country. Peace... is a noble word. But, almost all peace treaties made in human history have been broken. There is no genuine peace in people's mind without knowing the Prince of Peace: Jesus Christ.

On the field, there were companies of Rwandan Army and the Rwandan National Policy. Their marching demonstration was impressive. Well ordered and discplined. They even showcased their combat helicopter unit flying over the stadium. The marching band's performance was also impeccable and I felt like I was watching a well trained Korean or American military showcase. Rwandan Army is known to be one the best at least in the central Africa.

All the ceremony program was well organized and conducted in a very professional manner. All people were peaceful and orderly. On the opposite section from the main covered area, people wearing Rwanda' national colored shirts displayed "Kwibohora." It means "Liberation."

One government official said to me that Rwanda was liberated from the genocide 15 years ago, but it was only the beginning of the total liberation process. He said, "Rwanda needs to be further liberated from the HIV/AIDs, chronic poverty, corruption, dependence on foreign aid etc." He looked pretty determined. He is right. I find great hope in Rwandans like him and many others who aim high for higher standard of living and higher ethical values.

The three-hour long program ended with children singing a song of unity. They all are younger than 15 years of age. They all must have been born after the genocide. They are the generation of "Rwandan", not of Hutu or Tutsi. One little child proclaimed, "Dignity is our Strength." (Ijabo Riduhe Ijambo.) Rwandan are indeed a people of dignity.

I was so glad that I attended the ceremony although it was not fun sitting in the sun with the suit on.

Umunsi Mwiza wo Kwibohora! (Happy Liberation Day!) - Jeffrey