Empowering Coffee Farmers

One&Only Gorilla’s Nest is located at the foothills of Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park in the north of the country, an area renowned for its rich volcanic soil in which potatoes, flowers and coffee flourish. To engage local communities and contribute to socio-economic transformation in the region, the resort has partnered with Twongere Kawa Coko Cooperative. Through this unique collaboration, guests have a chance to visit the resort’s coffee garden, sip the finest Rwandan coffee and learn more about its origins from the farmers themselves.

Twongere Kawa Coko is a women-led cooperative with more than 200 members, including 169 women and 35 men. Located in Coko in the neighboring district of Gakenke, the farmers’ passion for growing coffee led to the name of the cooperative, ‘Twongere Kawa’ which means ‘Grow More Coffee’. The cooperative produces exceptional coffee and they aim to inspire a love for coffee in communities across the north of Rwanda.

One&Only Gorilla’s Nest initiated the partnership in 2020 and today the resort purchases coffee from the cooperative and offers guests the opportunity to visit the cooperative, tour the plantation and learn about coffee processing from crop to cup.

“We begin by preparing a nursery for seedlings, water them regularly and shade them from the bright Rwandan sun until they are ready to be planted. We use organic fertilizers to give the seedlings an extra kick to grow into coffee trees,” explains Therese Nyirangwabije, President of the Twongere Kawa Coko Cooperative.

The Coko coffee trees grow for a maximum of two years. Harvesting of the cherries which contain the beans begins in the third year by hand-picking the ripe ones which are red in color. After picking, the cherries are first washed in a large pool of water and stirred to remove the unripe ones. They are then put into a machine to remove the outer layer without damaging the bean. After being sun-dried for a day or two, the dried coffee beans are milled to remove the silver skin, followed by polishing. They are then packaged and ready for sale.

In addition to purchasing coffee for the resort and arranging tours, One&Only Gorilla’s Nest hires Twongere Kawa Coko Cooperative members to manage the coffee garden at the resort and provides opportunities for guests to learn more about where their coffee comes from and the people behind it.

Clarisse Mukatetero, a Twongere Kawa Coko Cooperative member and garden farmer at One&Only Gorilla’s Nest, is excited to work at the resort. “I take care of the coffee trees here in the garden by applying the knowledge I gained from my fellow farmers in the cooperative. I’m proud to plant and grow great coffee here,” she says.

Coffee has transformed the lives of the cooperative members and their communities through job creation. It is more than just a crop or a brewed beverage, it is an important source of income for individuals in the cooperative and brings great pride to the farmers.