In brief
Grace Mbabazi, founder of M&M Sozo Ltd., plans to showcase Rwandan honey at Shanghai’s CIIE from November 5‑10, leveraging China’s zero‑tariff policy and free‑booth provisions. The initiative follows her 2024 debut that opened trade channels and built brand awareness. The article examines Rwanda’s beekeeping industry, the expo’s role, and questions about scaling operations and market reception.
May 31, 2026 — Kigali, Rwanda. Grace Mbabazi, the founder and chief executive officer of M&M Sozo Ltd., announced her company’s plans to display its natural‑processed honey to Chinese buyers at the ninth China International Import Expo (CIIE), scheduled to run from November 5 to 10 in Shanghai. Mbabazi said that the expo provided direct access to importers, distributors, and potential partners for Rwandan honey after a first experience in 2024, and that the meeting in 2024 served as a stepping‑stone toward broader Chinese demand.
For last decade, Mbabazi associated the ubiquity of her product with Rwanda’s status as a national honey export hub. The company operates from Kigali’s Kicukiro District, where it harvests and classes honey harvested by Rwanda’s roughly 120,000 beekeepers dispersed across five main beekeeping zones, including Akagera National Park and the capital city. M&M Sozo Ltd. has built a reputation as one of the country’s high‑quality natural‑processed honey producers.
In a recent interview with Xinhua, Mbabazi highlighted the benefits of the CIIE platform. “Our experience at the CIIE showed that the expo can help local businesses build commercial partnerships and introduce products such as honey to Chinese consumers,” she remarked. Xinhua cites that the expo, which has run every year since 2018, has included Rwandan honey among the featured products.
In addition to match‑making perks, the Chinese government’s zero‑tariff policy for 53 African countries offers a direct price advantage for Rwandan honey. Xinhua notes that this policy, coupled with free exhibition booths and a “green channel” for expedited product clearance, could reduce marketing costs for M&M Sozo Ltd. and other African exhibitors. Players from the region also receive preferential treatment, further improving the competitiveness of Rwandan honey on the Chinese shelf.
Underlying national ambitions, Rwanda’s recognition of honey as its priority product under the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s One Country One Priority Product initiative underscores the strategic importance of this market. The government aims to use the CIIE as a gateway to strengthen the country’s export mix and bring visibility to its apiculture sector.
Mbabazi elaborated that the April‑August period of last year’s CIIE gave her firm a “rare opportunity to introduce her products to an international audience, raise brand awareness, engage with potential customers, importers, and distributors, and gain a better understanding of the Chinese market.” She indicated that the plan to showcase her honey this year rests on lessons learned from the 2024 participation and on China’s supportive policies.
Yet questions linger over scaling production to meet domestic demand. While Rwanda harbors an estimated 120,000 beekeepers, the article reflects that demographic data are estimates from 2022 and may not account for newly registered apiaries. It also notes that the country’s product standards for honey export have been tightened in recent years, with stricter laboratory testing and traceability protocols. M&M Sozo Ltd. must therefore sustain high certification levels to meet the Chinese market’s import requirements.
Another consideration is market reception in Shanghai. Xinhua does not detail consumer preferences or demand projections for natural honey, but explains that the CIIE’s large assembly of buyers provides a testing ground for product localization, packaging, and pricing strategies. Mbabazi’s strategy will , according to the outlet, focus on positioning Rwandan honey as a premium, sustainable commodity that can meet the growing Chinese interest in natural health foods.
Behind the scenes, the company is reportedly investing in new processing lines to ensure consistent product quality. Staff from the Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board in 2022 reported a high concentration of beekeepers in urban and peri‑urban zones, indicating that proximity to Kigali could facilitate streamlined supply chains for M&M Sozo Ltd. However, Xinhua does not provide concrete data on the firm’s current output or packaging capacities.
Looking forward, Mbabazi’s next steps, as reported by Xinhua, involve touring Chinese distribution centers post‑expo and negotiating long‑term supply contracts. The company hopes that the free booth advantage and “green channel” can translate into contracts equivalent to a 10–15% share of the Nigerian honey import market. Whether those projections stand up to the actual market dynamics remains uncertain.
In sum, Grace Mbabazi’s targeted entry into the Chinese market exemplifies Rwanda’s growing export ambition and the practical use of international trade fairs. By leveraging the CIIE’s structural benefits and China’s tariff card, M&M Sozo Ltd. seeks to expand its reach beyond domestic borders while expecting to grow its operations over the next several years.
