President Paul Kagame of Rwanda.

Rwanda has established a $2 million fund to provide financial and technical assistance to agricultural tech start-ups.

The funding is intended to solve the country's food difficulties as well as to stimulate innovation in the East African country.

The Hanga Agritech Innovation Challenge Fund was introduced by Yves Iradukundau, permanent secretary of the ministry of ICT and innovation.

The fund was established in collaboration with the ministry of agriculture and animal resources and the World Bank.

The news was announced at the just completed Hanga Pitchfest 2023. The pitching competition was in its third year.

The Hanga Agritech Innovation Challenge Fund was launched by Norman Schräpel, Head of Cluster Digital Transformation and Digital Economy at the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ in German) Rwanda.

"It is an exciting new opportunity for innovators that want to transform agriculture in Rwanda," he went on to say.

Loopa, a firm that creates organic fertiliser using the internet of things (IoT) and food waste, was named the winner.

This has been hailed as an innovative strategy to reducing Rwanda's reliance on imported fertiliser.

Loopa was awarded Rwf50 million (US$39 700).