by James Gashumba, Ji Li
KIGALI, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- When Agnes Ayinkamiye first encountered Juncao mushroom technology in 2007, she was an agriculture science major just graduated from the University of Rwanda.
She had yet to fathom how mushrooms could grow indoors.
"At first, people, including myself, didn't understand how mushrooms could be grown indoors. Even when they came, observed, and tasted them," said Ayinkamiye, now manager of Rubirizi Station of Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Board in Kigali, the Rwandan capital.
Juncao is a hybrid grass and an important multifunctional agricultural resource developed and used for mushroom farming in China. The innovation, invented by Lin Zhanxi from China's Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University in the 1980s, has benefited more than 100 countries, including Rwanda, allowing smallholder farmers to grow mushrooms from dried, chopped grasses, without cutting down trees and damaging the environment.
The grasses also help prevent soil erosion, a feature especially important to the mostly hilly Rwanda.
After months of learning with Chinese experts, Ayinkamiye became one of the first Rwandan trainers to help others master the Juncao technology.
Some have now turned mushroom growing into a business and their operations are expanding, said Ayinkamiye, 40. She later earned a master's degree in project management from Mount Kenya University.
"In my country, we typically find mushrooms in the hills; we never cultivated them. So, it was an exciting experience for me, and I was very happy to work on the project," she said in a recent interview.
Ayinkamiye said one of the amazing moments in her new job was the training sessions.
"The project was well-received, and we trained many people, particularly women's cooperatives and youth groups," she said. "I enjoyed my work immensely and was thrilled to collaborate with experts."
In Kabuye, a village in Kigali's Gasabo District, local farmers registered with non-governmental organizations would join Juncao technology training at Ayinkamiye's site.
Sometimes, Ayinkamiye and the experts would visit farmers' farms to provide on-site training.
Thanks to efforts by Chinese experts and local trainers like Ayinkamiye, Juncao technology has now been widely adopted in Rwanda.
Ayinkamiye spoke highly of the hard-working Chinese experts, who work at a much faster pace than Rwandans were used to. "It was challenging to keep up at first, but I adapted," she said. "The Chinese experts were also kind and supportive of the laborers we worked with. It was a positive experience."
"There has been a significant change since then. You can now find mushrooms in different markets, which wasn't the case before," Ayinkamiye said. "People can earn money through Juncao technology, and it's become very popular. I'm very happy about this progress."
The progress, however, came after beating some challenges.
One was a shortage of mushroom tubes to meet the growing demand from farmers, Ayinkamiye said. The tubes, with mushroom substrate, are needed to transport "seed mushrooms" to distant regions of the country.
Pascasie Niragire received training in China in 2016, with Prof. Lin, the inventor of Juncao technology.
She now works with the Umushumba Mwiza organization, helping women earn a better living through the cultivation of mushrooms, using Juncao technology. "We produce mushroom tubes, grow them and sell fresh mushrooms," Niragire said. "We plan to sell dry mushrooms and mushroom flour."
The organization, which means "Good Shepherd" in the local Kinyarwanda language, also offers catering and hotelier training, using mushrooms produced with Juncao technology in their kitchens.
Since 2006, experts from Fujian Agricultural and Forestry University have been working with the Rwandan government on Juncao technology, extending Juncao and other agricultural technologies at the China-Rwanda Agriculture Technology Demonstration Center, located in southern Rwanda.
Niragire hopes to open a school dedicated to teaching the cultivation of different types of mushrooms and the promotion of mushroom consumption. She said she was happy to see Prof. Lin, her mentor, visiting Rwanda again in early August, about 18 years after his innovation was introduced in the country.
Lin, now 81, told Xinhua in a recent interview that the success of Juncao technology in Rwanda was about firm belief and perseverance.
"It is precisely because of our persistence that a new way has been forged for the low-income poor rural households in Rwanda, which is to increase job opportunities, eradicate poverty, and uplift millions of poor women in rural households," he said.
About 4,000 Rwandan households have benefited from Juncao technology, some seeing their income double or even triple over the years, Lin said. ■