Sholi Women

Aba Sholi Co-op is located in Cyeza sector, Muhanga district, central Rwanda. Sholi co-op was established in 2008 by 30 women living and growing coffee in the region as a conscious effort to invigorate the local economy. Back then, coffee was only a small part of the association, there was no profitable market for coffee cherries as there was no washing station in area. This changed when two years later, the mission of the association changed, and we eventually became a cooperative. Slowly the cooperative started growing, adding new members every year and in 2014, Aba Sholi opened its very own washing station.

“Abateraninkunga” is a Kinyarwanda word which translates to “mutual assistance”, encapsulating their values to encourage more farmers to join. Today there are 610 producers, many of them women, growing coffee at altitudes between 1,800 and 2,000 masl. The Coop became Fair Trade certified in 2015, the same year they won the Rwanda Cup of Excellence Award. The co-operative owns central washing station to which the members can deliver cherries for processing.