REGION: Gakenke District
PRODUCERL: 459 smallholders
VARIETY: Bourbon

NOTES
Founded in 2005, the Mbilima Washing Station is part of the well known Dekundekawa Musasa Cooperative and was built to support farmers who were further away from the Cooperative’s first Washing Station at Ruli, which it had opened in 2003.

A great example of how coffee production and Cooperatives in Rwanda have helped provide basic support for families, the smallholders who contribute to Dekundekawa Musasa have been able to buy their own livestock, have access to long term credit without interest and many now have health insurance for the first time. The Cooperative has also built two schools and contributes 10% of its profits to the construction of new washing stations in other areas.

Roughly 459 smallholders deliver coffee cherries to the Washing Station, with about 80% of them being women and the Washing Station itself is mostly staffed by women. After delivery of the cherries, they’re sorted, processed and dried on raised beds before being taken to Ruli for hulling and further sorting before export.

Mbilima

We are coffee roasters and hospitality experts.

As a specialty coffee company, we get to build friendships with a huge variety of interesting and talented people all around the world who are embarking on new adventures every day. From coffee lovers to coffee shop owners and coffee farmers, we get to connect these people and it is such a humbling and inspiring privilege.

Since starting out in 1998, we have invested in our product, people and community. Back then we were just three passionate people roasting coffee out of a small shop in a provincial New Zealand surf town. Today, the only real difference is we have a lot more friends around the globe to learn things from and to share our coffee and hospitality with.

Mbilima

0.0

Mbilima