The minister made the remarks on January 19, 2026, during a discussion with senators on the progress of the livestock sector in Rwanda.
He said developing livestock farming requires increasing the volume of animal feed produced locally, which would help lower prices and reduce reliance on imports.
The government is continuing to invest in livestock development, including cattle, small livestock, and aquaculture, with the goal of increasing overall production.
Farmers are being supported to access improved breeds. In cattle farming, particular emphasis is being placed on increasing the number of improved breeds that produce higher milk yields and quality meat.
To accelerate the spread of improved breeds, the government plans to introduce advanced livestock technologies, including embryo transfer, which allows cattle to reproduce using transferred embryos.
Fish production is projected to rise from 52,000 tonnes in 2025 to 77,000 tonnes by 2029, while egg production is expected to increase from 17,000 tonnes in 2024 to 21,000 tonnes.
Dr. Ndabamenye stressed that growth in livestock numbers must go hand in hand with increased availability of affordable animal feed.
'Some of the inputs used in animal feed are sourced locally, but others are imported. To close this gap, we must strengthen local supply so that imports are reduced,' he said.
He noted that imported feed inputs often push prices up due to transport and other costs, making them unaffordable for many farmers.
Although Rwanda already has animal feed processing plants, the minister said many are operating far below capacity and need to be strengthened to meet national demand.
'Most of them operate at only between 32% and 60% of their capacity. That is not satisfactory if we want to ensure sufficient animal feed,' he said.
He added that while some raw materials may still need to be imported, the volumes can be significantly reduced. The government is pursuing two major strategies: increasing crop productionâ€"since agriculture must feed both people and livestockâ€"and strengthening collaboration with the private sector to improve efficiency in feed production.
According to the minister, enabling feed factories to operate at 80% to 90% of their capacity would significantly boost output. He also pointed to the importance of establishing storage facilities across the country for raw materials destined for animal feed processing.
Industrial animal feed production largely relies on by-products from maize, soybean, sugarcane, and other agro-processing industries.
Rwanda aims to ensure these by-products are properly stored and sold domestically, instead of being exported and later re-imported in the form of expensive animal feed.
Figures from the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) show that maize by-products amounted to 38,044 tonnes in 2024 and are expected to reach 70,560 tonnes by 2029.
Rice by-products are projected to rise from 859,516 tonnes to 1.3 million tonnes over the same period, while sugar industry by-products are expected to increase from 2,726 tonnes to 7,098 tonnes.
'We want a system that ensures farmers have access to sufficient animal feed,' Dr. Ndabamenye said. 'We are working to improve investment frameworks and ensure that industrial by-products are channelled back into livestock farming, while strictly observing quality standardsâ€"because poor-quality feed leads to losses.'
Senator Pelagie Uwera and Senator Dr. Leatitia Nyinawamwiza highlighted that the quality of animal feed remains a major concern and called for stronger oversight to ensure standards are met.
IGIHE
