SEASONAL AGRICULTURAL SURVEY SEASON A 2026 NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STATISTICS OF RWANDA
2 SAS–2026 A © NISR NISR © 2026 National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 P.O Box: 6139 Kigali, Rwanda Tel: +250 788 383103 Email: [email protected] Website: www.statistics.gov.rw Recommended citation: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR) Seasonal Agricultural Survey, Season A, March 2026
Chapter 3 SAS–2026 A © NISR Contents i INTRODUCTION------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 8 1.1. Background....................................................................................................................... 8 1.2. Objectives of the Seasonal Agricultural Survey (SAS)......................................................... 8 SURVEY DESIGN----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9 2.1. Sample frame design......................................................................................................... 9 2.2. Data collection procedures................................................................................................ 19 2.3. Data quality assurance...................................................................................................... 20 2.4. Data processing and analysis process................................................................................ 21 SURVEY FINDINGS--------------------------------------------------------------------------- 24 3.1. Agricultural land use......................................................................................................... 24 3.2. Crop area, yield and production estimates for major crops................................................ 24 3.3. Use of inputs...................................................................................................................... 30 3.4. Agricultural practices......................................................................................................... 31 3.5. Gross Value Added (GVA)................................................................................................... 32 MAIN TABLES -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 35 ANNEX
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Chapter 4 SAS–2026 A © NISR Table 1: List of Rwanda land cover classes............................................................................................. 5 Table 2: List of strata.............................................................................................................................. 7 Table 3: Population size per district by stratum (Number of segments)................................................. 9 Table 4: Allocation of 1200 sampled segments per district by stratum.................................................. 10 Table 5: Sampling Errors for major crops at the national level Season A 2026 data .............................. 15 Table 6: 2026 Season A Cultivated area, harvested area, production, and yield by crop....................... 26 Table 7 : Main crops GVA in constant 2017 prices (Frw /ha).................................................................. 29 Table 8 : Main crops GVA in constant 2024 prices (Frw /ha).................................................................. 29 Table 9: 2026 Season A_Agricultural land use per district (,000Ha)....................................................... 31 Table 10: 2026 Season A_Area under agricultural practices................................................................... 32 Table 11: 2026 Season A_Cultivated area by crop type and district (Ha)................................................ 33 Table 12: 2026 Season A_Harvested area by crop type and district (Ha)................................................ 34 Table 13: 2026 Season A_Average yield by crop type and district (Kg/Ha).............................................. 35 Table 14: 2026 Season A_Average yield of Large-Scale Farmers by crop type and district (Kg/Ha)......... 36 Table 15: 2026 Season A_Crop production by crop type and district (MT)............................................... 37 Table 16: 2026 Season A_the Use of production by farmers (Percentage)............................................... 38 Table 17: 2026 Season A_Cultivated area by cropping system and district (Percentage)......................... 39 Table 18: 2026 Season A_Sowing dates by district (Percentage).............................................................. 40 Table 19: 2026 Season A_Sowing date by crops (Percentage).................................................................. 41 Table 20: 2026 Season A_Use of seeds by farmer type per district (Percentage)...................................... 42 Table 21: 2026 Season A Seed type by crops (Percentage) ........................................................................ 43 Table 22: 2026 Season A_Percentage of farmers by source of improved seeds per district...................... 44 Table 23: 2026 Season A_Percentage of crops by source of seeds............................................................ 45 Table 24: 2026 Season A_Use of organic fertilizer by farmer type per district (Percentage)..................... 46 Table 25: 2026 Season A Use of inorganic fertilizer by farmer type per district (Percentage)................... 47 Table 26: 2026 Season A_Percentage of farmers by source of inorganic fertilizers per district................. 48 Table 27: 2026 Season A_Source of inorganic fertilizer by type of fertilizer............................................... 49 Table 28: 2026 Season A Percentage of plots by type of inorganic fertilizer per district............................ 50 Table 29: 2026 Season A_Use of pesticides by farmer type per district (Percentage)................................ 51 Table 30: 2026 Season A Percentage of plots by type of pesticides per district......................................... 52 Table 31: 2026 Season A Percentage of farmers who practiced agricultural practices............................. 53 Table 32: 2026 Season A Percentage of plots by types of irrigation used.................................................. 54 Table 33: 2026 Season A Percentage of plots by source of water used and district................................... 55 List of tables ii
5 SAS–2026 A © NISR Table 34: Percentage of plots by categories of Erosion Control Measures per Districts............................... 56 Table 35: 2026 Season A_Percentage of plots by degree of erosion per district........................................... 57
Chapter 6 SAS–2026 A © NISR Figure 1: 2026 Season A - Agricultural land use (in thousands of hectares) ...............................................20 Figure 2: 2026 Season A - Yield of major crops (MT/ha) ............................................................................21 Figure 3: 2026 Season A_Use of inputs by farmers ....................................................................................27 Figure 4: 2026 Season A - Use of agricultural practices ..............................................................................28 List of figures iii Chapter 7 SAS–2026 A © NISR Map 1: Rwanda land classification map done in 2023 .................................................................................6 Map 2: Distribution of stratified clusters by district .....................................................................................7 Map 3: SAS Sampling Units .......................................................................................................................... 8 Map 4: Map showing square cluster(segment) with 25 sampled points ....................................................11 Map 5: Distribution of Maize Production by District, Season A 2026 .........................................................22 Map 6: Distribution of Beans Production by District, Season A 2026 .........................................................23 Map 7: Distribution of Paddy Rice Production by District, Season A 2026 .................................................23 Map 8: Distribution of Irish Potato Production by District, Season A 2026 ................................................24 Map 9: Distribution of Sweet Potato Production by District, Season A 2026 ..............................................24 Map 10: Distribution of Cassava Production by District, Season A 2026 ....................................................25 Map 11: Distribution of Banana Production by District, Season A 2026 ....................................................25 List of mapsiv Chapter 8 SAS–2026 A © NISR 1.1. Background High-quality agricultural statistics are fundamental in assessing the performance of national agricultural programs and are therefore essential for evidence-based decision making. As the application of statistical data in decision- making processes continues to grow, so does the demand for agriculture data. In this regard, the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) conducts the Seasonal Agricultural Survey (SAS). This survey is designed to collect agricultural information, mainly related to potential agricultural land use, crop area, yield, and production, agricultural inputs, agricultural practices, and other critical agricultural statistics. These survey data are supplemented by administrative records collected by the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) through its routine monitoring of coffee and tea production. NISR conducts the Seasonal Agricultural Survey (SAS) following three main agricultural seasons. Season A (September to February of the following year), Season B (March to June) while Season C (July-September) is a shorter season dedicated mainly to the cultivation of vegetables and sweet potatoes grown in swamps and Irish potatoes grown in the volcanic agro- ecological zone. 1.2. Objectives of the Seasonal Agricultural Survey (SAS) The main objective of SAS is to provide timely, accurate, reliable, and comprehensive agricultural statistics that describe the structure of agriculture in Rwanda mainly in terms of land use, crop area, yield, and crop production. The survey’s results are useful in monitoring current agricultural and food supply conditions, thereby facilitating evidence-based decision-making for the development of the agricultural sector. The survey specifically captures data related to land use, including agricultural land, arable land, physical crop cultivated area, crop land, pasture land, and fallow land. It also generates information on crop production, measuring the quantity of harvested crop in kilograms or tons. Additionally, the survey assesses crop yield, indicating the quantity of crop harvested per unit of land area in kilograms per hectare. Moreover, it examines the use of inputs such as improved seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides. Finally, the survey delves into various agricultural practices, including irrigation, soil erosion protection, agroforestry, and agriculture mechanization. INTRODUCTION 1
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2.1. Sample frame design
To establish a foundation for conducting probability-based surveys that comprehensively cover farm-
level data and to enhance the precision of survey estimates, SAS uses a Multiple Frame Sampling (MFS)
methodology. This approach involves constructing an area frame from which the survey sample is drawn.
In addition, this frame is completed by a list frame of Large-Scale Farmers (LSF), defined as those operating
at least 10 hectares of agricultural land for staple crops and at least 2 hectares for horticultural crops. This
ensures coverage of crops predominantly cultivated by large-scale farmers, which may not be adequately
represented in the standalone area frame. The construction of an area frame involves several steps, including
land cover classification, land stratification and sampling of segments.
2.1.1. Land cover classification
Land classification constitutes the first step in designing the sampling frame for the Seasonal Agriculture
Survey. This process involves categorizing the total available land in the country into different land use or land
cover types. The purpose is to enhance sampling precision by targeting the adequate land. With a combination
of different spatial layers available in the country, plus a photo interpretation of a time series (2010 to 2023)
of high-resolution (50 to 30 cm) satellite images the total land of the country was divided into 14 land cover
classes (as shown in Table 1).
Table 1: List of Rwanda land cover classes
No
Class name
Area (Ha)
Percentage share
1
Agricultural land on hills
1,307,956
51.7
2
Non-rice Agricultural Wetland
56,905
2.2
3
Mixed rangeland
127,640
5.0
4
Low-density built-up area
95,740
3.8
5
Paddy rice wetland
22,825
0.9
6
Tea plantation
23,732
0.9
7
Non cropped wetlands
36,846
1.5
8
Forest
381,391
15.1
9
National parks
190,247
7.5
10
Water bodies
155,030
6.1
11
High-density built-up area
58,657
2.3
12
Protected wetland
45,883
1.8
13
Bare land/rocks
15,412
0.6
14
Exclusive rangeland
13,064
0.5
Source: NISR, SAS 2026
Six of the fourteen land cover classes are associated to agricultural activities. These include Agricultural land
on hillside, non-rice agricultural Wetland, mixed rangeland, Low-density built-up areas, wetlands designated
for paddy rice and tea plantation.
SURVEY DESIGN
2
10 SAS–2026 A © NISR Map 1: Rwanda land classification map done in 2023 Source: NISR, SAS 2026 The subsequent step involves constructing the area frame which includes grouping the agriculturally relevant land cover classes into distinct strata to identify the sampling frame. 2.1.2. Land stratification The stratification is a result of a combination of sampling units (clusters) with land use/land cover. Each cluster is assigned to a specific stratum based on its predominant land class type. Among the fourteen land cover classes, four are included into the agricultural survey frame, while the others are excluded. The included land cover classes comprise hillside agricultural land, non-rice agricultural land, mixed rangeland, and Low-density built-up area (with potential for agricultural production, such as kitchen gardens, fruit trees, and livestock). Certain agricultural land classes are excluded from the sampling frame. These exclusions comprise: tea plantations as they are subject to regular monitoring by the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB), and wetlands designated for paddy rice cultivation are typically considered in Large-Scale Farmers, making them another component of the survey frame. Moreover, since the 2024 SAS, a new land cover class called Exclusive Rangeland has been introduced specifically for areas used for pastoral activities. This class is also excluded from the sampling frame. By overlapping the clusters layer with land cover classes layer, each cluster is assigned a dominant land cover class as a stratum definition, basing on a defined threshold as follow:
11 SAS–2026 A © NISR Table 2: List of strata Stratum code Stratum name Definition 1.0 Dominant hill crop land Clusters with Hillside agricultural land cover class greater or equal to 60 % of the total area of the cluster 2.0 Dominant Wetland crops Clusters with non-rice wetland land cover class greater than 25 % of total area of the cluster 3.0 Dominant rangeland Clusters with mixed rangeland land cover class greater or equal to 60 % of the total area of the cluster 4.0 Mixed The rest of other possible combinations 9.0 Excluded All clusters with excluded land cover classes greater or equal to 50 % of the total area of the cluster Source: NISR, SAS 2026 The SAS sample is drawn from four main strata: dominant hill crop land, dominant wetland crops, dominant rangeland, and mixed land strata. Map 2: Distribution of stratified clusters by district Source: NISR, SAS 2026
12 SAS–2026 A © NISR 2.1.3. Sampling Units The Seasonal Agricultural Survey is an area-based sample survey that uses land sampling units, small square land units of 300 by 300 meters (9ha). Geographic Information System (GIS) technology is used to create the units covering the whole country. In total the sampling frame has 269,989 square units (clusters), each identified by a unique cluster number as shown on the map below. Map 3: SAS Sampling Units Source: NISR, SAS 2026