Water on wheels: Tanker truck entrepreneurs provide water for livestock in Rwanda

When hearing of water tanker trucks, most people think of transporting water from rural to urban centers to provide drinking water for people in cities. But in Rwanda, tanker truck owners can make good business filling agricultural dams which provide water for livestock. There is significant demand for this service and relatively few providers, resulting in a gap which can be filled by new agriculture entrepreneurs.

Access to water is a constraint to livestock farming in the eastern province of Rwanda, especially Nyagatare and Gatsibo districts. Farmers in these areas usually guide their cattle to shared water points for drinking. The average distance cattle must walk is 3 km (1.86 mi). This may not be far for a person, but it is far for cattle.

A long hot walk in the sun not only takes time but can impact the cattle’s health. Cattle traveling to water may not get enough to drink, which can result in less milk production. Additionally, communal water points which gather cattle from different farmers can increase the risk of disease spread between herds, weakening or killing animals. Farmers in these areas are frustrated by the strenuous distances their cattle must walk everyday in search of water and the risk of contracting illnesses.

To address these challenges, some farmers have created a direct supply of water on their farms by digging dams, which collect rain during the wet seasons. Then, during dry periods, say from June to September, farmers may hire water tanker trucks to fill their dams, which allows them a continued, direct supply of water for their cattle. Livestock owners are generally wealthier farmers, and cattle are highly valued. Farmers want to keep their cattle alive and healthy, and, because of the scarcity of water tanker trucks, they are often willing to pay large sums so long as they get water for their animals.

In dry periods the demand for water tanker trucks is high, because there are simply too few water trucks in the area, and they must drive from Kigali, which is 130 km away, or a 3 hour drive. Therefore, there is a large market for water tank trucks in the eastern province, especially in the districts of Nyagatare and Gatsibo, to supply water to livestock farms. To learn more about this business opportunity, see the report “Current state of irrigation-as-a-service in Rwanda” at waterforfood.nebraska.edu/entrepreneurship.