Rwanda - Rwamatamu Community

Process: Washed

Varietal: Red Bourbon

Altitude: 1800-2000 masl

Location: Lake Kivu - Western Nyamashake

Rwamatamu Coffee is a family business owned and operated by Mukantwaza Laetitia and Rutaganda Gaston, who have been in the coffee sector for 13+ years. They founded Rwamatamu in 2015 aiming for a financial gain but also contribute to fight against poverty in rural communities through harvesting coffee. Rwamatamu Coffee has 20 hectares of coffee plantation from where it harvests its own cherries but also purchases cherries from affiliate co-operatives and local producer families and smallholder farmers. These cherries from different sources are separately collected, processed, sun-dried, sorted bagged and eventually exported as a premium product.

Rwamatamu work together with cooperatives of coffee farmers who live in the area. 80% of their employees are women. Their goal is to build healthy relationships with the community based on common values and goals. This is done by committing to a regular purchase of beans and investing in the growth of employees. They also commit to a set standard of quality each year.

Rwamatamu’s coffee farm and washing station are located in the Western province of Rwanda, where the landscape consists of picturesque rolling hills flanked around Lake Kivu in Nyamasheke District.