Ernest Mugisha

Ernest Mugisha is a student at the Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture (RICA). He is an entrepreneur, public speaker, mentor, and youth advocate whose goal is to improve the living standards of people from underserved communities.

Ernest has initiated and led several social impact projects aimed at solving pressing challenges in his native Rwanda and beyond. He is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer for INFIM AG-TRANSFORM AFRICA, a Rwanda based professional consultancy and manufacturer dealing in agricultural production, supply-chain, and project development. The company employs more than 500 people on a seasonal basis with nine full-time workers, and 90% of its employees are youths. It was recognized as the best youth-led agricultural organization of the year 2021 Africa by FOYA (Founder of the Year Awards) Global and Ernest also recognized as the Agripreneur of the Year 2021.

Ernest is also the co-founder and Director of MHF, an integrated farming system that allows users to produce foods at home without leaving the house or tilling land. This innovation came about as a convenient and quick solution to COVID-19 disruption and preventing food insecurities in households.

He also founded and currently serves as the Executive Director of PANGELASSA REVIVAL, a non-profit that aims to solve the problems of social exclusion among communities. Recognizing a gap between people’s wishes to donate to the poor in Rwanda and their ability to do so, Ernest developed a system that simplifies the donation process and enables communication between donating and receiving parties. Currently, more than 2000 people have been directly impacted by the platform.

A talented and inspiring speaker, Ernest has served as the Public Speaking and Debate Coach and Judge at the iDebate Rwanda, an NGO that is using debate to change the lives of young Rwandans and East Africans by equipping students with public speaking and critical thinking skills, encouraging civil discourse and peaceful debate. He is also Founder of the VUGA Public Speaking Academy, a program aimed at equipping students with pitching skills which culminates with practical exams at the end of each term at RICA.

He is also a Mathematics and English peer tutor at university, and has worked for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency in Rwanda, as well as United Nations Volunteers in Disaster and Humanitarian Relief where he assisted refugees in resettlement and helped with family reunification. He also initiated and currently coordinates a program called ‘AN HOUR WITH A FARMER’, that aims create and strengthen bilateral relationships between RICA students and local farmers so that the extension services will be smoothly provided.

Ernest was recognized and awarded by his university as the “Outstanding Academic Performance Achiever 2019-2020” and was also recognized by the Rwandan Ministry of Youth-and-Culture as the Best Youth Advocate for the rules and regulations against COVID-19.

For his various projects and initiatives Ernest was made a Millennium Fellow, a semester-long leadership development program run by The United Nations and MCN.