Posted on October, 23, 2024 at 09:31 am
Volkswagen Group Africa has initiated operations at a new facility in Gashora, Rwanda, about 60km from Kigali, to pilot a modern farming project using electric tractors.
The GenFarm Project aims to introduce e-powered mechanised farming services for rural areas in Africa, while also offering mobility services for the transportation of goods and people.
In June 2023, VW Group Africa signed an agreement with the Rwanda government to allocate land for the project. The facility, part of a partnership with VW Mobility Solutions Rwanda and the VW Group Innovation Centre Europe, is intended to provide clean energy and business space for local farming cooperatives.
The project includes an "Empowerment Hub" (e-Hub), currently in a pre-construction phase. When completed, the e-Hub will be equipped with a photovoltaic power system and energy storage to supply clean energy to farming cooperatives. It will also provide storage and operational space for e-tractors and e-scooters. The hub is expected to be fully operational by the first half of 2025.
VW Group Innovation Centre Europe is supplying the electric tractors and other equipment from Germany, while VW Mobility Solutions Rwanda will manage operations at the pilot hub.
Dr Nikolai Ardey, managing director of VW Group Innovation, described the hub’s services, explaining that farmers will be able to book e-tractors, which come with trained drivers, for sustainable farming. A key feature of the system is the battery swap system, which integrates the tractor’s battery into the hub’s energy infrastructure.
The GenFarm Project is supported by the Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture (Rica) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). RicaICA focuses on research and education to train Rwanda’s future farmers, while GIZ is involved in procuring machinery and assessing the services the hub will offer to local farmers.
The pilot phase of the project will directly benefit farming cooperatives in the Bugesera district. Rwanda’s agricultural sector, which contributes 25% of the country’s GDP, continues to play a vital role in the nation's economy.
Source: Times Live