Hope Magazine - Issue 76 by Publisher of Hope Magazine

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JUNE 2017 ISSUE 76

TELLING RWANDAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S STORY

MAGAZINE

Tremendous achievements of the

7-year Government Program

HIGHLIGHTS “With the best agricultural season starting in September, we aim to bring 20 cooperatives on board, especially in maize production since it’s the main season we are entering.” In its Multi-Peril Crop Insurance, UAP provides cover for all commercial field crops including wheat, maize, barley, rice, tea, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, as well as horticultural, floricultural and tree crops. “The way the product is designed is that we work closely with farmers,” Batamuriza says. “They trust us because we don’t serve them from our office but we go on the ground to see what is there.”

UAP RWANDA

BRALIRWA

CONTENTS 7 EDITORIAL Seven Year Government Program Giant leaps of change 10 GOVERNMENT PROGRAM Tremendous achievements of the 7-year Government Program 14 KCB RWANDA to make services more convenient through cashless drive 16 BRALIRWA continues efforts to improve local sourcing contributing to development 20 UAP’S innovative crop insurance is good for farmers and for agri-businesses

COVER Tremendous achievements of the 7-year Government Program

Safintra Limited

Access Bank Rwanda

Akagera Business Group

9 18

Kigali Serena Hotel

Tigo Rwanda Limited

42 NCR EATON helping to manage power efficiently

Crown Healthcare Limited

BPR Bank Rwanda

46 TEDMER to export Made-in-Rwanda building materials to EAC and Europe

Mobisol Limited

Ultimate Developers Limited

52 VISION FUND RWANDA Gatsibo group prospers and takes care of poor children

Sulfo Industries Limited

54 KPA STAFF join President Kagame in wetland park umuganda

Hotpoint Limited

Roko Construction Limited

22 TIGO Launches a mega promo dubbed 'Imvura y'Amafaranga' 28 RRA Increasing tax compliance to finance Rwanda’s development

Airtel Rwanda

Lake Kivu Serena Hotel

DEVELOPMENT BANK OF RWANDA

38 AIRTEL join Kayonza residents in Umuganda

Toyota Rwanda

58 SINOTRUK sales & services centre a truck experience like no other

36 BRD to support energy and manufacturing through Afrexim facility

M Peace Plaza

KCB Bank Rwanda

56 RWANDA LAW REFORM COMMISSION to fully review legislation within 5 years

Advertisers

SINOTRUK RWANDA HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

Kigali Marriot Hotel WAKA Fitness Group

33 34, 35

Davis and Shirtliff

Century Real Estate

Ameki Color Paints

Engen Rwanda Limited

Business Partners International

Africa Medical Supplier

Nakumatt Supermarket

Société Pétrolière Limited

Herocean Enterprises Limited

Kigali Bearings Import Limited

Sinotruk Rwanda Limited

Tigo Rwanda Limited

PUBLISHER'S WORD

TEAM Albert Ndata Allan Migadde Ben Gasore Erwin Winkler Himbana Alexandre

Seven Year Government Program Giant leaps of change

Ishimwe Yvonne Keith Ntagozera Latim Lawrence Manzi Joseph Micheal Balinda Mutabazi Jackson Rumanzi Abraham Shema Ignace Shema Leonard Sindayirwanya Isabelle Rebero Daniel

DESIGN & LAYOUT Dani K. PUBLISHED BY Hope Magazine Ltd.

ADVERTISING & GENERAL INQUIRIES P.O. Box 6176 Kigali-Rwanda +250 788 524189 / +250 788 404138 info@hope-mag.com www.hope-mag.com

hen the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) stopped the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis and liberated the country 23 years ago, Rwanda’s status as a failed state was apparent. The infrastructures were ravaged, much of the personnel had been decimated, most had fled the country, the economy was frozen to below abyss levels, while the social fabric and the soul of Rwanda had been hounded and wounded to apocalyptic proportions. Despite the gloom that hovered about at the time, the RPF, through its philosophy of positive change, refused to be hostage of the moment, discarded elegiac lamentations and went straight into rebuilding the nation, putting the state back to its feet. Emergency interventions were summoned, political activities that called for unity and reconciliation were ushered and economic programmes were drawn. This was the Foundation. Years later, Rwanda has taken giant leaps of change. The current Seven Year Government Program is a living testimony of that metamorphosis that has seen hundreds gotten out of poverty, infrastructures restored and much more built to support the foundations of development. ‘Access’ has become a ubiquitous phrase and reality in Rwanda. Access to; justice, good services, education, health, electricity, water and so much more, have all become a reality, realized by all, not a small section of the population as was the case in yesteryears. Under the stewardship of President Paul Kagame, Rwanda has come to personify many good things; good governance, efficiency in the utilisation of resources, corruption-free and restoration of a people’s hope and dignity. So, as the 7-year government program, 2010-2017, comes to an end, there is reason to celebrate what we have achieved, there is cause for thanking the RPF leadership that have brought us thus far and there is enough foundation for us to consolidate what we have gained, be more participative in the innovative and implementation processes.

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CELEBRATING 23 YEARS OF LIBERATION

7-YEAR GOVERNMENT PROGRAM SPECIAL FEATURE

Tremendous achievements of the

7-year Government Program � When President Paul Kagame was re-elected in 2010 and formed his government, the then Prime Minister Bernard Makuza, as required by article 118 of the Constitution, presented the Government Programme for the President’s 7-year mandate to both chambers of Parliament.

lready during his election campaign, President Kagame had made it clear that he would maintain the priorities of his first mandate while building on the achievements made during that period, with the overall goal of transforming Rwanda from a poor country into a middle-income nation. Seven years later, and 23 years after the RPF stopped the Genocide against the Tutsis, liberated the country from discriminatory and hateful politics, and led Rwandans on the path to socioeconomic liberation, it is time to assess what has been achieved of the government programme which was based on the four pillars of Good Governance, Justice, Economic Development and Social Wellbeing.

GOOD GOVERNANCE 1) Political administration Decision- and policy-making has been brought closer to the people through a decentralised administration. In the past seven years, the decentralization policy has been enhanced and people’s participation in electing their leadership has continuously increased. This was paired with a revision of the law governing decentralized entities to clearly define responsibilities of the local entities. This clearly has had an effect on people’s participatiovn: in 2011, participation in parliamentary elections reached 96%, while the average citizen participation in Umuganda is 78.1%. This sense of social responsibility might also be linked to the principle of accountability taking firm root in society, as the imihigo (performance contracts) were extended to the umudugulu and even family level, while citizen’s consultation is mandatory in establishing the district imihigo. Further progress was also made in enhancing unity and reconciliation among Rwandans, as research conducted by National Unity and Reconciliation Commission in 2012 indicates that Rwanda Reconciliation & Social Cohesion Barometer stands at 80%.

2) Social mobilization To strengthen the sense of civic responsibility and ownership, citizens are regularly sensitized on government programs in different fora including Umuganda, Ministers’ visits and other meetings with citizens, while the Ndi Umunyarwanda program is implemented. Furthermore, the National Itorero Commission (NIC) was established, and currently, 70% of Rwandans from 7 years old participate in Itorero. A voluntary national service policy has been put in place, and over 90,000 Rwandan youth have so far enrolled in it. Much attention has also been given to improving customer service in both public and private institutions, with the Rwanda Development Board spearheading activities to enhance customer care and good service delivery. 10

To measure the progress, the Citizens Report Card was introduced to allow the population give its assessment of mainly public service delivery, and it reveals a drastic increase in people’s satisfaction with service delivery at local level. In the same context, the government has sustained the policy of zero-tolerance of corruption and injustice, with an overhaul of the law governing the Office of Ombudsman, the enactment of a law protecting whistle-blowers and a revision of the leadership code of conduct. Hotlines were set up at the national level to report suspected corruption, and corruption-related cases are given priority in court. The Office of the Ombudsman also publishes a list of people convicted of corruption. As a result, Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index (2013) ranks Rwanda 49th worldwide and 4th in Africa.

3) Laws to promote development Revision of laws, orders and regulations where necessary, enacting new ones to align them with contemporary situations and issues in the interest of Rwandans for accelerated political, social, economic and financial development is an ongoing process. In this respect, the Rwanda Law Reform Commission was created and later reformed to cater for legal drafting and translation functions .

4) National security and sovereignty Cooperation between security organs has been enhanced by joint efforts on sharing information regarding suspicious of subversive activities, and security personnel is regularly trained and equipped to be able to curb any national security threat, including cybercrime. There is continued sensitization of the population to report any threat or information on possible crimes, reinforced by the training of nearly 77,947 people in community policing. Rwanda’s Disaster Resilience was also enhanced through various measures such as the establishment of early-warning systems and fast responder teams. HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

5) Foreign affairs Promotion of good relations with friendly countries, especially in Africa, has continued through bilateral visits by high-level officials, including numerous official visits by the Head of State. New embassies and consulates have been opened in countries where Rwanda has major interests. Negotiations on the East African Monetary Union were concluded and the EAC Monetary Union Protocol and its implementation roadmap await ratification by the National Parliaments of the EAC Partner States. Last but not least, the Cessation Clause for Rwandan Refugees is being implemented, which means that Rwandans will no longer be recognised as refugees since peace and security are ensured in the country.

6) Youth development For the past seven years, the government has spent a lot of energy to enhance capacity building among youth to reduce and keep the number of jobless youth below 5%. Among other initiatives, a 5-year National Employment Programme (NEP) has been put in place, while the promotion of youth cooperatives has led to the creation of 1664 groups. At the same time, programmes have been deployed to promote youth’s good health and positive mindset with a view of preventing drugs and alcohol abuse and anti-social behaviour, notably through the establishment of youth clubs at the local level.

7) Gender development Gender mainstreaming, or entrenching the principle of gender equality (equity) in all programmes of the country, has been effected, as well as monitoring its inclusion in budget planning for all organs and implementation of all laws enhancing it. Women have also been encouraged to become cooperative members, seek loans from lending agencies and to line up their activities to market demands; As of March 2014, 674,327 women out of 1,711,750 SACCO applicants had accessed SACCO loans, and women accessed 26.9% of the total SACCO loan share.

7-YEAR GOVERNMENT PROGRAM

8) Civil society development A new NGO law provides mechanisms of transparency in NGO management. The organisations are registered by the Rwanda Governance Board (RGB) which offers financial and technical support to NGOs and CSOs with viable development projects. At the district level, NGOs and other development partners operate within the Joint Action Development Forums (JADF) through which their activities are aligned with the Government’s development agenda. Moreover, government institutions have started outsourcing services to local NGOs, such as the management of orphanages and agricultural extension roles.

9) Media development

From 2011 to 2012, loans acquired by women increased by 231%, and by 27.2% in 2013 In each health centre, the Isange programme to assist victims of violence has been integrated, while 300,000 men and women from different sectors have been sensitized on gender-based

violence (GBV), labour and land organic laws. Police statistics indicated that reported GBV cases reduced by 3.9% in 2012, which has also been achieved thanks to radio talk-shows and continuous community campaigns.

A Media Capacity Building Strategy was developed, and its implementation started in 2013. There has also been sensitisation of private operators to invest in media, which has resulted in the creation of private televisions such as TV 10, Lemigo TV, GO TV, Family TV, Gospel TV and TV1. Internet based TV such as Igihe TV are also broadcasting. The Media High Council was reorganised to enable media self-regulation, and a self-regulatory commission was established to ensure discipline of the media practitioners.

JUSTICE Justice has been made more accessible to ordinary citizens with the creation of Mediation Committees (Abunzi) and ‘Maisons d’Accès à la Justice’ (MAJ). More than 80% of disputes under the competence of mediation committees are solved, thereby significantly reducing the workload of courts. In order to speed up the execution of court decisions, the functioning of bailiffs has been streamlined. And to reduce the pressure on detention facilities, community service (TIG) as an alternative penalty to imprisonment was extended to ordinary crimes. Different programs including training unity and reconciliation are in place to help ‘Tigistes’ to reintegrate into the community.

Genocide cases and ideology In order to track genocide perpetrators and

bring them to trial either in their host countries or in Rwanda, the Genocide Fugitive Tracking Unit (GGFTU) was strengthened with additional and upgraded staff. Some countries such as the Netherlands and Canada, and the international criminal tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), have extradited genocide fugitives to Rwanda. A documentation centre for Gacaca archives has been completed and is accessible to all interested users, while the digitisation process of documents is ongoing. In order to address genocide ideology, the National Commission for the Fight against Genocide (CNLG) was strengthened. Currently, the Commission is specifically focusing on fighting against impunity, combating genocide denial and genocide ideology, research on genocide and improving the welfare of genocide survivors. Meanwhile, campaigning against genocide and

its ideology continues in schools, communities, workplaces and through public events. At the same time, Rwandans and foreigners are encouraged to speak out and write about the genocide. Genocide memorial sites are being maintained and rehabilitated, and four of them have been included among the World Heritage Sites: Gisozi, Ntarama, Murambi and Bisesero.

Upholding human rights Rwanda has ratified and adopted several international human rights conventions such as the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, the Protocol on the convention against torture and the protocol to the covenant on Civil and Political Rights, among others. Teaching and sensitization of Rwandans about their basic human rights has been enhanced.

ECONOMY Agriculture and animal resources Among the flagship policies to improve agriculture are land consolidation, use of improved seeds and fertilizers, fighting soil erosion, mechanization, irrigation and encouraging farmers to grow crops that are more productive and profitable in their regions. Land consolidated in season 2015-A covered 815,841 ha (83%). More than a million farmers joined the Twigire muhinzi groups in their villages, and in Season 2015-B the programme

set up more than 10,000 demonstration plots and 5,500 learning plots which together reached more than half a million farmers. Marshland and hillside irrigation have been promoted with the aim of increasing the irrigated area from 13,000 ha to 100,000 ha – in Season 2015-A it stood at 39,160 ha. Various initiatives have also been launched to increase the quantity and quality of traditional export crops, and the output by the end of 2015 was as follows: www.hope-mag.com

Coffee: 112,177MT produced and 105,558 MT exported worth $368.5m Tea: 141,442 MT produced and 135,782 MT exported worth $365.3m Pyrethrum: 94 MT worth $23.3m Horticulture is being developed with more land made available and training of farmers to diversify agricultural exports. All these activities on the ground have also been supported by extension services such as: 11

7-YEAR GOVERNMENT PROGRAM SPECIAL FEATURE

(operational), 50 health centres and 300 schools equipped with solar panels, as well as 3719 domestic and 74 institutional biogas plants installed. All this will be supplemented by electricity interconnection with neighbouring countries to facilitate exchange of electricity. As for water and sanitation, the 2017 target is for all Rwandans to have access to clean and proper sanitation. As per the EICV4, access to clean water is 84.8% while to improved sanitation 83.4%.

Improved settlement

Kivuwatt Methane Gas Plant The Project has boosted the National Energy Grid

District and sector agronomists and veterinary officers A network of 1062 agro dealers for easy access to inputs Post-harvest & market-linkage: construction of 133 warehouses constructed across the country; storage facilities with a capacity of 244,545 MT; 326 drying grounds; 1226 km of feeder roads constructed; 47,282 farmers trained in post-harvest handling Agricultural finance lending (for production and agro-processing) was 6.6% and micro-finance loans provided to agricultural sector at 15.7 % Promoting of genetic improvement programmes to increase animal resources productivity: 118,000 cows inseminated (16.8% of the total)

of imports substitutes, MINICOM has designed a Domestic Market Recapturing Strategy (DMRS) to increase domestic production for local consumption. The DMRS is designed to save $450 million per year or 17.8% of the import bill in 5 years. As for tourism, a national tourism master plan is being implemented, with as one of its flagship programmes the promotion of MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) tourism, in which context the landmark Kigali Convention Centre was built and already hosted several major conferences. At the same time, a Domestic Tourism Strategy was developed to encourage Rwandans to visit their own tourism sites.

In order to increase livestock production (meat, milk, eggs, hides and skins, fish) fishing, cattle and small stock farming has been promoted. As a result, food security has significantly improved while malnutrition has decreased:

Road construction and rehabilitation is an ongoing process, with hundreds of kilometres of roads having been constructed or rehabilitated in the past seven years, and numerous projects in progress or in the pipeline. Preparations for the construction of the Isaka-Kigali railway (494 km) are progressing.The expansion of Kigali International Airport has been completed, while an MoU was signed with an investor for the new Bugesera International Airport.

17% of the population is food insecure (target: 14%) 84,702 children in 112 schools provided milk through one cup per child program

Trade, Industry and Tourism To promote industry, the Kigali Special Economic Zone is under development. Phase I (98 ha, 62 investors) is completed, with 15 investors already operating while 42 others are undergoing construction and the rest are still mobilising resources. For Phase II (178 ha, 15 investors), 80% of all the plots are fully booked and infrastructure development is 64% complete. Trade has been boosted by the construction of several crossborder markets as well as the organisation of trade fairs at home and participation in those abroad. In the context of the East African Community, the EAC customs union and common market protocols were Implemented and a commodities exchange market was launched. Together with Uganda and Kenya some tripartite projects were launched including studies for the standard-gauge railway, the implementation of the single customs territory and single tourist visa, as well as the use of national IDs, student identity cards and voters’ cards as travel documents. In order to promote domestic production, especially 12

Infrastructure

Renovation and extension of Rubavu and Kamembe airports is ongoing. Feasibility studies and detailed design for modern ports on Lake Kivu (Rubavu, Karongi and Rusizi) were completed in January 2015. The 7-year program also envisaged increasing electricity generation more than tenfold from 85MW to 1000MW by 2017 through the following projects, among others: Nyabarongo hydro power plant (28MW) Rusizi III (48MW) Micro-hydro power plants in different districts (20MW). Methane gas plants (150MW). Geothermal plants (310MW). These initiatives go hand in hand with efforts to increase the number of Rwandans having access to electricity from 10% to 70% by 2017 (48% ongrid and 22% off-grid). By end June 2015, 23% was connected to the grid. Meanwhile, projects are implemented specifically in rural areas to produce energy from solar, wind, biogas and other sources, including an 8.5MW solar project in Rwamagana HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

Construction master plans for all districts have been finished. A national affordable housing policy has been completed, while a national urbanisation policy as well as a densification strategy have been elaborated. Investors are also being mobilised to finance affordable housing projects. Meanwhile, grouped settlement in rural areas (imidugudu) has been promoted, and today 78% of the population live in grouped settlement, while it is estimated that 17.6% is living in urban areas (against a target of 30%).

Private sector development, cooperatives and investment With the Public-Private Dialogue, a platform was created to discuss issues of private sector growth. At the same time, the Private Sector Federation has strengthened the professional associations, and these have acquired the mutual recognition agreements with their EAC counterparts. Mechanisms have also been put in place to facilitate investors in securing loans, especially those in the small and medium enterprises; first among them is the Business Development Fund (BDF) which provides guarantees to obtain loans. It is currently in the process of decentralising all its services. Through the implementation of cross-cutting strategies, Rwanda has become the 62nd best country globally to do business, according to the World Bank, and the 2nd best in African. The Government also established a labour information system that tracks employment creation, and consolidated different job creation initiatives into a National Employment Programme to reduce unemployment and keep it below 5%. Individual tradespeople have been encouraged to get together in cooperatives, with for example 2105 farmers’ cooperatives formed out of a target of 3,500. In addition, 120 unions, 13 federations and one confederation of cooperatives were formed to make their products and services more competitive. Cooperative inspection and audit services have been strengthened and decentralised.

Land, forestry, environment and natural resources At the national and district level, land use master plans have been approved to manage land for increased productivity. A portal for land use was launched in 2014 (www.rwandalanduse.rnra. rw), and the Land Administration and Information System (LAIS) is operational in all districts. This has sped up land registration and issuance of land titles to enable investment in land resources – 10.6 million plots were registered and 8,604,407 leases issued. To fight erosion, radical and progressive terraces were created and through maintenance of existing

7-YEAR GOVERNMENT PROGRAM SPECIAL FEATURE

forest and reforestation, 29.8% of Rwanda’s territory is now covered by forests (target: 30% by 2017). In addition, a Forest Productivity Measurement methodology and a Forest Monitoring Information System (FMIS) have been designed. Other measures have been taken to increase capacities in coping up with climate change and implement the national strategy on climate change and low carbon projects, and the Green Economy has been mainstreamed in the EDPRS-2. Green Several green and climate resilient villages were established, helped by the

creation of the Environment and Climate Change Fund (FONERWA), which already has mobilized Rwf 52 billion in grants.

Information & Communication Technology Cabinet approved the National Broadband Policy in September 2013, which paves the way for new broadband interventions. Mobile cellular

subscription has reached 75.5%, and mobile broadband 28%. All Government bodies are connected to the national fibre optic backbone, to which 579 government and private sector institutions are connected. This has led to an increasing number of government services being available online through the Irembo network. The second phase of deploying the 4G last-mile network is in progress, and will connect all schools, health centres, sectors, cells as well as citizens and businesses across the country.

SOCIAL WELL-BEING About 40,000 students in secondary and higher learning institutions supported; 18,000 beneficiaries receive medical treatment; 600 women who were raped during the Genocide are given financial support for income generating projects; 43,826 houses have been constructed for genocide survivors The National Council of Persons living with Disabilities (PWD) is operational, and a national policy and strategic plan on disability are in place. Categorization of PWD was launched to better provide them with adequate assistance, and some 22,000 people have been categorized;

Sports avnd leisure

National Broadband Policy Cabinet approved the policy paving way for new broadband interventions

Labour promotion A 5-year program for priority skills sectors (infrastructure; agriculture; natural resources; investment, trade and industry, ict; health and education) was approved. Under the National Employment Program (NEP), a Labour Market Information System (LMS) was established to facilitate efficient and effective collection of information on employment and labour.

Health and population growth control Service delivery at health facilities has been improved, and all national referral hospitals and district hospitals have a Quality Improvement or Quality Assurance committee. With the introduction of ‘mutuelle de santé,’ health insurance has become available to all and subscription rates reached 80.72% by the end of 2015. To ensure easy access to healthcare, health posts, centres and hospitals are constantly being constructed, renovated and upgraded. Concurrently, strategies have been implemented to strengthen the prevention and treatment of epidemic diseases. Regarding malaria, for instance, 84% of households owned at least

one impregnated mosquito net by 2013, thanks to a policy that saw more than 10 million nets distributed between 2009 and 2014, and a campaign of indoor spraying in districts with very high malaria endemicity. Significant efforts have also been made to eradicate malnutrition, especially through programs such as Girinka, kitchen gardens, one cup of milk for children and the school feeding program. Since 2010 a multi-sector plan to eliminate malnutrition has been implemented, among others through a 1000 days campaign and annual screening of malnutrition for children below the age of 5. Awareness campaigns on hygiene and sanitation using TV, radio and community work have also been organized.

Protection of vulnerable people Through initiatives such as the Vision Umurenge Program (VUP), the government has tackled extreme poverty by assisting the vulnerable to recover from poverty and bring down the number of Rwandans below the poverty line ($1 per day) below 20%. This also includes special attention for Genocide survivors, with among others the following achievements by 2014:

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In the National Sports Development Policy, adopted in 2013, the government has set the ambitious target of being ranked in the top 10 in Africa for football, and among the top 3 in basketball, volleyball, cycling, athletics and paralympic sports. The government continues to invest in improved sports infrastructure, with as flagship programs the construction of a new national stadium for football with seating capacity of at least 60,000 (for which a piece of land of 60ha in Gahanga sector has been secured), new volleyball and basketball indoor stadia as well as an Olympic village in Nyanza. At the same time, private investors are encourage to finance infrastructure and promote sports and leisure through establishment of sports schools. Programs are also in place to develop skills in sports, both through enhanced training of coaches and referees and by giving special attention to talented youth. In this respect, the government has invested in new sports infrastructure in selected schools in every province and the city of Kigali.

Education, research and technology & culture The 9-year Basic Education program was put in practice, with specific emphasis on vocational schools, and was expanded to 12 years. It reached its target in 2014 by enrolling students in the 6th year of secondary school. 12,410 new classrooms were built to support the program, and about 308 new TVET schools were built between 2010 and 2014. In primary, the pupils/teacher ratio is 58:1 (while the target is 46:1) and in secondary it is 30:1. 13

KCB BANK RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

BANK

KCB Rwanda to make services more convenient through

cashless drive

CB Bank Rwanda Ltd targets to make its products and services more convenient and accessible to everyone through technology, as it aims to become the best bank in the market. Hope Magazine met with the bank’s CEO, Maurice Toroitich. The Central Bank recently lowered its policy rate from 6.5% to 6% to support the economy and encourage commercial banks to increase lending to the private sector;

what is KCB Rwanda’s reaction to this, what is your loan target this year? There are three things that drive lending generally. The key repo rate is a policy rate that is used by the Central Bank to implement its Monetary Policy stance. It is the rate that the Central Bank defines based on its Monetary Policy objectives which is either to increase or decrease liquidity in the banking sector hence driving an increase or decrease in lending activity by banks. If the Central Bank reduces the rate from 6.5% to 6%, firstly it means it is optimistic about the status of inflation in the market and so encourages banks banks to move liquidity from the repo window of the Central Bank to private sector lending which is more lucrative. In other words, it would make more profitable for banks to lend to the private sector than to place funds with Central Bank and earn interest based on the Repo rate. Secondly, the status of demand and supply in the market is important for the banks I.e the demand for credit and supply of liquidity is important in setting the price of credit in the market. Presently, the demand for loans is huge: there is demand for credit from agriculture, construction, energy, individuals, etc. Whether money will go to all those sectors at reduced prices depends on the liquidity available in the banking system. Thirdly, the appetite for banks to lend to the private sector also depends a lot on a bank’s perception of risk (probability of default) of a particular economic segment or individual customer. KCB Rwanda is an active lender to the private sector and we have been instrumental over the years in the development of key commercial and manufacturing facilities in Rwanda. We shall continue to lend to the private sector in accordance with liquidity available in our hands and also depending on the quality of the overall loan portfolio that we also already have. On average, we expect to grow our loan book by 13% to 15% on an annual basis.

Maurice Toroitich Managing Director KCB Bank Rwanda

Local and regional banks have registered lower net earnings in the last two years; what is KCB doing to return to bigger profit margins? KCB operates in all East African countries and each one of these units operates under different economic conditions. In Kenya there is rate-capping, which is impacting banks’ profitability. We don’t have that here in Rwanda, but we have high operating costs and an elevated rate of non-performing loans which affect the performance of banks. In Uganda the challenge is high interest rates and high NPLs. In Tanzania, liquidity in the banking sector following a change in government policy on where public funds are held has had a negative effect on bank earnings. Overall, KCB in Rwanda and in the whole region seeks to reduce operating costs through the application of technology and remaining vigilant to manage high risk credit.

How do you see the future of the banking sector in the country and in the region? It is common knowledge that the banking sector is going through a lot of transformation because of disruptive technologies. Banking will always be there, but how banking will be done will change quite dramatically in the coming years. Much closer home, there is a moral responsibility on the banks in the region to invest more in the productive sectors of the economy I.e agriculture, manufacturing, mining, hotel and services – things that create value to the under served populations and support exports. In the last 10 years, banks of necessity have invested in infrastructure which is good but we can’t continue investing in the same field all the time without overlaying production and service on the newly developed infrastructure. As commodity prices are getting back to normal and inflation is declining in the region, how is KCB taking advantage of this situation? It’s very important to look at the business of the bank in the context of the customers of the bank. We can expect they will get more revenue and more cash flow generated by our commodity producing and trading customers which will give the bank more liquidity. We shall therefore be looking to capture customers in the export market much more than we have done before. When inflation declines, it means that potentially, interest rates will also decline and make loans more affordable. This will stimulate increased demand and will be good for the bank as loan portfolios will increase.

HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

Are there any products or services that KCB is currently putting in the spotlight? One thing we are trying to do is to make our products and services more convenient and accessible through technology. So we are doing more on the mobile platform; recently, we launched m-Visa which enables payments with a mobile phone, and we are also doing mobile lending. Basically, we don’t want to make people come to the bank anymore, we want them to do banking operations wherever they are; so we are putting more of our products and services into the mobile phone.

What is KCB Rwanda’s outlook in the next 1 to 5 years? We are very optimistic about the market, the economy and the region in general. Commodity prices have started picking up, inflation has started slowing down; all the infrastructure investments that governments in the region have made in the last couple of years, including the standard-gauge railway, are going to start generating new value which should be good for banks.

Recently KCB Rwanda embarked on downsizing; what was the reason and what is the outcome for the bank? One of the challenges that many banks including KCB have in Rwanda today is a high cost to income ratio. Typically, up to 50% of a bank’s operating costs relate to staff. Given that customers are not willing to pay any much more for services consumes in the bank than what they are already paying, its only reasonable that an optimal staff cost ratio is achieved to ensure banks remain competitive. The staff lay offs were the outcome of a refitting exercise to keep in line with the status of our business and to align with new realities such as that most of our customers now use non-branch channels like mobile banking, which means the demand for a high number of staff in a branch is not there anymore. For example, in the past we might have had 5 tellers in a branch, but with the number of transactions being done physically today, maybe three tellers are enough. This means that we are becoming more of a sales and services organization that is technology and innovation oriented. The outcome of the exercise has been positive in many fronts including a higher employment rate and upskilling of our existing staff.

Where do you see KCB Rwanda in 5 years? We hope to have become the best bank in Rwanda in the creation of value for all our stakeholders.

BRALIRWA continues efforts to improve local sourcing

contributing to socioeconomic development ffEnshrined in one of the company’s core visions of empowering communities in which it operates, BRALIRWA Ltd a member of the Heineken Group is steadily pushing forward its agenda of increased local sourcing of its raw-materials.

our years ago, the company in partnership with a local maize milling company MINIMEX established a modern maize farm in Ndego Sector of Kayonza district, BRAMIN Maize Farm, to contribute to bridging the gap in maize crop supply and by so doing further reduce dependence on imported raw-materials particularly of the maize grits used in beer production. In addition to its already established beer portfolio that utilizes maize grits among other ingredients, BRALIRWA in November 2016 launched Huza beer which is already gaining popularity in Rwanda and uses maize in its brewing process further increases its use of maize in production. Thanks to the farm’s production combined with local smallholder farmers, maize crops supplied to MINIMEX are covering for over 40% of BRALIRWA’s maize grits demand and according to projections; this rate is slated to increase over the years. Notwithstanding this contribution to increased supply of maize crops to MINIMEX, BRAMIN maize farm has had tremendous impact in the socioeconomic landscape not only of the region of Kayonza it is

located but also in the agricultural sector and the Rwandan economy at large. Speaking with residents of Ndego sector amongst whom more than 200 have benefited employment in the farm, the modern farm has enabled them meet their needs. Nyirandikuryayo Alphonsine a farmer employed in BRAMIN says that the establishment of this farm gave them a sigh of relief. “Ndego is a very dry area and in most seasons, we often found ourselves producing less than we needed to survive. Many people had already moved to other areas while others fled to Tanzania oftentimes to seek employment to try and meet the needs of their families”. For employees such as Nyirandikuryayo, BRAMIN offers subsidized crops often on credit.Dusingizimana is another excited farmer who says his monthly salary of over Frw67,000 has enabled him marry and is now able to meet the needs of his family which includes his one year old daughter.Besides access to food, farmers employed on the farm and hundreds more who are regularly given causal occupations to harvest crops have gained knowledge in better farming techniques and attest that despite the untamable climatic conditions of their area, they HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

are seeing improvements in crop yields within their own fields. “The biggest lesson I learnt in BRAMIN is line planting for maize and the importance of planting select seeds. These inputs have made my farming more productive and with it improved life at home. As a farmer, the income I receive covers up for our survival during harsh seasons. I now complement my husband in taking care of our family”, Nyirandikuryayo emphasized.

An impactful gem in Rwanda’s agricultural sector However, BRAMIN’s impact on the lives of Rwandans, the agricultural sector and economy at large far exceeds the lifeline that it is for the 213 farmers it employs. Speaking to Keith McGaw the farm manager, BRAMIN has among others helped demonstrate the techniques of modern agriculture particularly to entities looking to engage in medium and large scale farming. A private entity established by partnership of two Rwandan companies, BRAMIN establishes a good precedence for private investors willing to invest in the agricultural sector.

BRALIRWA SPECIAL FEATURE

“BRAMIN is important as the first large scale private venture in irrigated maize farming in Rwanda. As a key element in BRALIRWA’s local sourcing initiative this is a big step forward for us. And for MINIMEX, securing reliable and quality commodity maize will greatly support the development of their milling business. With the seed growing element added through Seed Co, BRAMIN will partner with the Ministry of Agriculture to support building of Rwanda’s emerging smallholder maize farmers. BRALIRWA is delighted that together with our partners, we have been able to make this important contribution to Rwanda’s progress towards the realization of the Government’s Vision 2020,” BRALIRWA’s Managing Director, Victor Madiela noted. Similarly, MINIMEX Chairman Felicien Mutalikanwa is convinced that the BRAMIN model sets good precedence in private investment in modernized agriculture. “The investment in irrigation infrastructure has helped minimize the inherent risk from climate change and hence allowed for optimum utilization of the right inputs (certified seeds, manure) to obtain maximum productivity from our land”. For Mutalikanwa, the BRAMIN experience can inspire other entrepreneurs who remain reluctant to invest in agriculture considering the level of risk involved. Also, the MINIMEX proprietor is proudly hopeful that BRAMIN will contribute to reducing Rwanda’s trade deficit through facilitating increased local production of maize products. The BRAMIN Maize farm is a modern facility that employs high-tech pivot irrigation, compost manuring processes and several other farming techniques such as regular soil sampling and testing to respond to real-time land qualities ensuring high all-year round agricultural productivity. “Given that Rwanda has small arable land available for the farming community, only modernized farming promises provision of sufficient food produce for the growing Rwandan population,” Keith says.

Thanks to this mix of high-tech methods, BRAMIN has been able to increase production of its lead maize crop per hectare rising to an average productivity of 7.5 tons per hectare compared to the ordinary 2 tons/ha productivity in Rwanda. As such, the 695ha farm is already a big contributor of maize crop yields supplied to MINIMEX and sold as seeds to Rwanda’s farmer community. With MINIMEX, maize is transformed into high quality maize flour for the local market part which forms the national export bulk destined to neighboring countries. Also, maize produce is transformed into maize grits supplied to BRALIRWA for use in its brewing processes for some of Rwanda’s most popular beer products. But only 50% of BRAMIN farm is used for maize farming each farming season with the remaining land used to cultivate more than 16 different vegetable varieties and Irish potatoes. This crop rotation technique is used to ensure sustained soil fertility by avoiding exploitation of a few particular soil minerals by planting a single crop over a long period of time. But other than this scientific benefit, the farm’s diversified vegetable crops have further supported reduction of Rwanda’s import dependence in the agricultural sector. On yet another frontier of improved farming, BRAMIN Maize Farm continues to demonstrate organic farming techniques that are prerequisite in maintaining high yields while battling the urge for hybridization and excessive use of fertilisers. For instance, all residues from crops produced by the farm are transformed into organic manure using a locally built organic compost treatment system and returned to the farm to facilitate the manuring of the soils.

Widening modernized farming techniques, increasing maize production on smallholder farms Besides the contribution that BRAMIN farm is making in the transformation of the agricultural sector,

it remains undeniable that unless productivity in smallholder farms increases, the target of breaking the dependence on import food produce will remain far from reach. To contribute to the Government’s efforts of modernizing farming, a Heineken Group sponsored project tagged “Community Revenue Enhancement through Agricultural Technology Extension (CREATE)” is being implemented in the districts of Kayonza and Rwamagana since 2014 under the guidance of the European Cooperative for Rural Development (EUCORD). The four year project is currently working with 26 cooperatives of maize growers implying over 8,500 individuals. With the objective of extending modern farming techniques to rural maize farmers and by so doing enhance their incomes and lead to improved living standards, CREATE is already bringing smiles on farmers of all kinds, as they continue to reap big. The project uses two main approaches; demonstration of modern farming techniques through demonstration fields constructed mostly at cell offices, and through farm extension services where agronomists are deployed to support cooperatives and individual farmers in their daily activities. But the Eastern region of Rwanda is an area prone to harsh dry seasons that oftentimes lead to total losses in crop production. As a result, the BRAMIN irrigation model is now being replicated in smaller units with the farmer cooperatives. Thus thanks to a recently approved partnership between IFC and EROCORD partly cofunded by the CREATE project, three other major activities to facilitate sustainable modernization have been embarked on. The areas of focus are building the management capacities of the cooperatives, establishing small-scale irrigation with 6 different pilots of irrigation technologies being tested by 5 cooperatives on over 38ha of land in Rwamagana. Also, the late additions targets to support farmers build their knowledge in the area of access to agricultural business financing. According to Ngoga Fabrice, the recent additions are already promising amplified impact on sustained quality and increased productivity. “Since we have already moved a distance towards building the capacities of local farmers in modern farming techniques, the addition of irrigation, access to finance skills, and management know-how will undoubtedly sustain and serge acquired results to greater levels.” With production increased, a ready market under the project is available for farmers on a buying price always a notch higher than prevailing market prices according to Ngoga. Through MINIMEX’s sister firm ProDev, farmers on the CREATE project have access to ready market with good prices all year. Thanks to BRAMIN’s impact which ranges from having put land formerly unproductive land to use, its demonstration of the opportunity for private investments in modern farming in Rwanda to the contribution to the bridging of Rwanda’s trade deficit by facilitating increased local production and the increased access to income for many Rwandan farmers whose ability to buy from the market has increased, the promise for making further impact on the socioeconomic welfare of the Rwandan people remains solid.

www.hope-mag.com

CELEBRATING 23 YEARS OF LIBERATION Rwanda today has gained from the struggle 23 years ago and looks to the future with hope and optimism. Credit to the men and women who participated in the fight for the country's freedom.

CELEBRATING 23 YEARS OF LIBERATION Celebrating archievements in the struggle for freedom and dignity. Today the Rwanda Government is commited to serve with intent for the political, social, economic wellfare of all Rwandans and on a steady path to progress.

UAP RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

UAP’s innovative crop insurance is

good for farmers and for agri-businesses fThe f National Agricultural Show, which was held late June in Mulindi, carried the theme ‘Adopt climate resilient technologies to improve farmers’ livelihoods.’ The theme highlighted the increasing risk posed by climate change, which can severely affect harvests, or even wipe them out entirely. “The way the product is designed is that we work closely with farmers,” Batamuriza says. “They trust us because we don’t serve them from our office but we go on the ground to see what is there.” That field visit is also required for UAP’s specialists to determine the premium, which depends on the crop type, the kinds of peril to be insured and the value of the expected harvest. UAP’s crop insurance covers any calamity that could damage or destroy the plants before harvest – be it losses caused by hailstorm, fire, drought, excessive rainfall, frost damage, flooding, lightning as well as crop diseases that are not due to negligence or caused by the farmers themselves. In addition, the company also offers coverage for farm assets and equipment including harvested crops, green houses and irrigation facilities.

Robinah Batamuriza in charge of agriculture insurance at UAP Insurance Rwanda

“Insurance cushions farmers against losses, it’s a fallback in the event of a bad harvest,” Batamuriza explains. “We will compensate whenever there is a loss on the ground.” But that is not the only benefit of an insurance; it also helps farmers access loans from commercial banks, since a crop policy document is accepted by financial institutions as an alternative form of security. As such, UAP’s crop insurance doesn’t only make farmers sleep well at night, it’s also an innovative financial tool that stimulates investment in agri-business.

t was therefore no coincidence that among the exhibitors at the expo were several insurance companies. As a failed harvest might completely ruin a farmer, some insurers have started to offer packages to cover such losses. One of those is UAP Insurance Rwanda, which has a comprehensive agriculture insurance which caters for both crop and livestock coverage. According to Robinah Batamuriza, who is in charge of agriculture insurance at UAP, such coverage might still be new but there is clearly a demand for it. “Clients have responded very well and they are very happy with what we have to offer,” she says. “With the best agricultural season starting in September, we aim to bring 20 cooperatives on board, especially in maize production since it’s the main season we are entering.” In its MultiPeril Crop Insurance, UAP provides cover for all commercial field crops including wheat, maize, barley, rice, tea, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, as well as horticultural, floricultural and tree crops.

Robinah Batamuriza in charge of agriculture insurance at UAP Insurance Rwanda HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

UAP RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

UAP Rwanda

Pays tribute to Genocide victims at Nyarusange Memorial ff Employees of insurance and financial services firm UAP Rwanda on 29th June paid tribute to the victims of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsis at Nyarusange memorial site.

he delegation consisted of board members, staff, agents and other intermediaries, and they were joined by representatives of partner organizations and local leaders of Muhanga. “We wanted to comfort UAP staff and share our message deeply from the UAP family to the rest of the Rwandan community,” UAP Rwanda’s acting Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer James Mbithi said. He acknowledged “the courage and strong commitment of the people of Rwanda to stand against genocide, and their efforts to ensure that this never happens again in Rwanda or elsewhere.”“I take this opportunity to thank our partners, clients, and the local leaders represented here for joining the UAP family in honoring the lives of our relatives, friends and neighbors today,” Mbithi said, adding that the company is committed to stand by the Rwandan community and be part of the noble fight against any type of discrimination.

UAP Rwanda dontated cows to four widows

He also expressed the company’s commitment to help in the reconstruction of Rwanda. UAP Rwanda also donated cows to help improve the livelihoods of four widows living in Nyarusange sector in Muhanga. The beneficiaries were recommended by Muhanga District officials who focused on the neediest families.

about genocide and the impact of genocide ideology. UAP executives stress the importance of Kwibuka to enhance awareness among their staff about the Genocide and to contribute to prevent another genocide anywhere through discussions. “Our message is a message of comfort and hope as we acknowledge Rwandans’ resilience and determination to build a greater nation,” Mbithi said. “We are very proud to contribute to the reconstruction and rebuilding efforts for a better future in Rwanda.”

UAP Remembers UAP Rwanda started their commemoration events in 2014 as a way of paying tribute Rwandans who perished in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsis, and particularly relatives of its employees. They have been remembering with Rwanda and colleagues from East Africa with a special focus on education

James Mbithi UAP Acting CEO with Mrs. Josephine Umuhoza Muhanga District Mayor representative

UAP staff lay wreaths on the graves at the memorial www.hope-mag.com

RWANDA REVENUE AUTHORITY SPECIAL FEATURE

RRA Increasing tax compliance to finance Rwanda’s development

� In line with the government’s objective of reducing aid dependency and financing the national budget entirely with its own resources, Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA), established in 1997, has made continuous efforts to widen the tax base and improve tax compliance and revenue collection. Richard Tusabe RRA Commissioner General

he official figures for the first half of the 2016/17 fiscal year that were released January show that RRA indeed is succeeding in steadily increasing tax revenue. During the first half of this fiscal year that ended in December, RRA managed to further collect more taxes thanks to the registration of new taxpayers, improved use of e-tax facilities and increased compliance. Commenting on the figures, RRA Commissioner General Richard Tusabe pointed out that the new measures taken have helped improve total revenue collection that excluding local government taxes and fees increased to Rwf 514 billion in the first semester of the current fiscal year compared to Rwf 470.6 billion in the same period last year. At 99.7%, the figure fell just slightly short of the target of Rwf 516.5 billion. He also stated that this (0.3%) deficit was to be integrated into the second half of the fiscal year target as a way to emphasis commitment to achieve annual target with continued innovation in service delivery. Local government taxes and fees (trading license, property tax, rental income tax and fees) for July-December 2016 amounted to Rwf 16.7 billion against a target of Rwf 17.8 billion, which is an achievement of 93.6%.

Measures that influenced revenue performance Tusabe explained that RRA managed to widen the tax base by registering new commercial houses for Value Added Tax (VAT) on rental income, and professional associations such as architects, engineers, bailiffs and property valuers for corporate, personal (CIT/ PIT) and VAT taxes. “As a result, the total number of taxpayers increased by 7,840 (+5%) in the six months from July to December 2016,” he noted. Regarding the use of Electronic Billing Machines (EBMs), Tusabe said they increased the sensitisation and usage of EBMs which led to an increase of users from 11,436 to 12,805 (+12%).

At the time, Tusabe said the plan will help achieve the collection targets for 2016/17 of over Rwf 1.08 trillion, which represents 55.6% of the country’s national budget. “RRA is going to carry out more awareness initiatives on tax compliance especially towards businesses in the construction and hotel industry across large, medium and small taxpayers,” Tusabe explained. Recent research and risk analysis carried out by RRA shows that some sectors such as construction and hotels are more likely to be non-compliant in the four categories of taxpayers’ compliance which are registration risk, filing risk, payment risk and underreporting risk.

In addition, online e-tax facilities continued to simplify the process of filing and paying taxes. Alongside monitoring taxpayers’ compliance and enforcement of tax arrear payments, Tusabe said RRA conducted strong sensitization and education campaigns towards various sectors and the general public to improve their understanding of tax matters and improve taxpayers’ compliance.

Construction sector

Tax compliance plan

He said the strategy for improvement is to organize compliance resources around individual construction projects. Furthermore, new requirements will be introduced for online verification of workers. “During the year, we will target successful referrals for criminal prosecution,” he said.

All these measures are in accordance with the tax compliance improvement plan launched by RRA last year to boost revenue collection in the current financial year.

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“The construction sector is high-risk for all key compliance categories. In particular, Pay As You Earn (PAYE) is underperforming. This is due to the prevailing culture of informal employment. Additionally, there is high likelihood of large companies using complex schemes to evade taxes,” Tusabe observed.

RWANDA REVENUE AUTHORITY SPECIAL FEATURE

Facilitating compliance (service) RRA will conduct construction site visits to provide on-post registration, introduce online validation of self-employment status, introduce SMS messaging to remind of filing and payment obligation, encourage reporting of tax fraud and evasion through a hotline, develop information explaining tax obligations, advertise educational material in construction magazines in Rwanda and coordinate with the Rwanda Institution of Engineers to communicate with construction companies, better understand non-compliance and assist with registration. Dealing with non-compliance (enforcement) Tusabe noted that RRA will target successful referrals for criminal prosecution, conduct random site visits to validate registration of workers, ensure 100% examination of imports of newly registered taxpayers, target audits towards new registration with high VAT credit balance, acquire new data from immigration on work permit and visas, acquire data on construction applications and permits, as warranted revoke tax agent licenses and tax arrears identified to be recovered.

Hotel sector Tusabe noted that while the hotel sector accounts for a small percentage of the tax base, lack of tax compliance is common in the sector. “In particular, losses and informal employment in the hotel sector are a serious risk to tax revenue. These issues will be addressed by increasing the number of on-site visits, coordination with industry associations and improvement in internal capabilities. During the year, RRA will target successful referrals for criminal prosecution,” he said.

IBM Machine in use

Key priorities for second semester 2016/17 (January-June) Tusabe said the tax revenue target for the second semester of the 2016/17 fiscal year is Rwf 588.1 billion, comprised of Central Government Tax Revenue equivalent to Rwf 571.7 billion and the Local Government Tax of Rwf 16.4 billion. In addition, the non-tax revenue target for the period is Rwf 21.0 billion. Since January this year, RRA embarked on a VAT input validations system that will enable it to increase VAT collection and automatically eliminates fictitious VAT declarations and the corresponding claims of VAT refund.

RRA shall continue to monitor infrastructures put in place to ensure good service delivery and be able to identify improvement opportunities. Maintain and adopt partnerships that ease tax collection utilizing ICT infrastructures

RRA will continue enforcing the use of EBMs by monitoring the VAT-registered taxpayers and sensitize consumers to always request EBM receipts from traders.

There will also be a taxpayer registry clean-up that will enable them to widen the tax base by reaching more people who are still involved informal business.

Tusabe said they will continue to use the Electronic Cargo Tracking System in order to reduce fraud and enhance trade facilitation along the northern and central corridors.

RRA will continue enforcement measures to collect tax arrears and sensitization and education campaigns reminding taxpayers to fulfil their tax obligations and to use online facilities available for them.

Measures for facilitating compliance Regarding hotels, the commissioner said RRA will capture and update registration details during site visits, conduct a seminar for the hotel sector on tax requirements, conduct a seminar for self-employed staff on tax requirements, develop information explaining requirements, coordinate with the Rwanda Hotel Association, develop media to communicate revenue services available to hotels and contact late and stop filers to secure returns.

Graph Showing Key priorities for second semester 2016/17 (Jan – June)

Measures for dealing with noncompliance He also stressed out that RRA will target at successful referral for criminal prosecution, develop media to publish instances of serious noncompliance, conduct random site visits to validate registration of employees, conduct scheduled site visits to validate investment projects and acquire data on construction applications and permits. www.hope-mag.com

Celebrating 23 Years Of Liberation Rwanda today personifies hope and a Good Governance Model on the African continent Kudos to the Father of Modern Rwanda H.E Paul Kagame.

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DEVELOPMENT BANK OF RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

BRD to support energy and manufacturing through Afrexim facility

Alex Kanyankore BRDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Chief Executive Officer said after the signing of an agreement with Afrximbank

ff The Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) have signed an agreement for a $10-million credit facility to support energy and manufacturing projects in Rwanda. 36

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DEVELOPMENT BANK OF RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

Agreement signed between BRD and Afrximbank to support projects that help increase electricity generation in the country

“The projects being financed are in line with our bank’s strategy aimed at promoting industrialization and export development,” BRD’s Chief Executive Officer Alex Kanyankore, said after the signing.

he agreement, signed on the margins of the 24th Afreximbank AGM meeting in Kigali, is a 7-year amortizing term loan that BRD will use to support projects that help increase electricity generation and consumption, thereby contributing to the growth of the country’s manufacturing and export sectors. “The projects being financed are in line with our bank’s strategy aimed at promoting industrialization and export development,” BRD’s Chief Executive Officer, Alex Kanyankore, said after the signing. According to Afreximbank officials, through partnerships with lenders like BRD the institution wants to reach out to strategic sectors through wholesale facilities extended to the local banks in member states for on-lending. BRD mainly targets SMEs in energy, agroprocessing, hospitality as well as manufacturing. It has had partnerships with Afreximbank since December 2010, when they first received $25 million to finance projects dealing with horticulture, tea, coffee, agro-processing and manufacturing.

Alex Kanyankore speaks at a meeting with Afrximbank www.hope-mag.com

AIRTEL RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

Michael Adjei Airtel Managing Director participating in the Umuganda

Airtel Rwanda Staff join

Kayonza residents in Umuganda ff Kigali Rwanda. Saturday, July 24th, 2017. Airtel Rwanda staff today joined residents of Kayonza District, Mukarange Sector in the monthly Umuganda exercise.

he Airtel team together with the residents cleaned and cleared the garbage points in the area. Among other exercises were clearing land where a house for one of the vulnerable families in the community will be built. Airtel Rwanda also donated cleaning tools including hoes,

shovels, slashes, rakes among others to the local community. Other donations were scholastic materials donated to the kindergarten school known as “Irerero” as well as iron sheets to 20 vulnerable families. Speaking after Umuganda, Airtel Rwanda Managing Director, Michael Adjei pledged to continue the practice to not only

HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

contribute to an environmentally clean country but to also strengthen community engagement as well as support the country’s development programs of which Umuganda is among. In his remarks, he said, “The Airtel family is more than grateful to participate in Umuganda together with the residents of Mukarange Sector.

AIRTEL RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

About Bharti Airtel Bharti Airtel Limited is a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa. Headquartered in New Delhi, India, the company ranks amongst the top 3 mobile service providers globally in terms of subscribers. In India, the company’s product offerings include 2G, 3G and 4G wireless services, mobile commerce, fixed line services, high speed DSL broadband, IPTV, DTH, enterprise services including national & international long distance services to carriers. In the rest of the geographies, it offers 2G, 3G and 4G wireless services and mobile commerce. Bharti Airtel had over 353 million customers across its operations at the end of January 2016.

Murasira Eugene the beneficiary of the house to be built

We shall continue this practice not only in Kayonza but the entire country as well.” The Vice Mayor for Kayonza Jean Damascene Harerimana spoke on behalf of Mukarange/ Kayonza residents thanked Airtel for the gesture and donation to the community. He said, “We thank Airtel for the heartfelt contribution to Mukarange Sector and

for joining hands with us in this month’s Umuganda. We hope that this practice will continue from month to month.” Umuganda is a mandatory community service carried out in Rwanda every last Saturday of the month from 0800hs to 1100hrs intended to build community involvement and strengthen national development programs.

To know more please visit,

www.airtel.com

Airtel Staff at Umuganda clear the ground where a house for one of the vulnerable resident's house will be built www.hope-mag.com

CELEBRATING 23 YEARS OF LIBERATION

NCR SPECIAL FEATURE

Eaton building

EATON helping to manage power

efficiently, safely and sustainably ffElectrical power is more than just a convenience; it’s an essential element of doing business today. To deliver the competitive advantage customers demand, global technology leader Eaton helps enterprises proactively measure and manage the power system as a strategic integrated asset through its lifecycle.

ith global sales of $19.7 billion in 2016, Eaton provides energy-efficient solutions that help its customers effectively manage power more efficiently, safely and sustainably. The company is dedicated to improving the quality of life and the environment through the use of power management technologies and services. It has approximately 95,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 175 countries. Eaton is dedicated to ensuring that reliable, efficient and safe power is available when it’s needed most. With unparalleled knowledge of electrical power management across industries, experts at Eaton deliver customized, integrated solutions to solve customers’ most critical challenges. Its focus is on delivering the right solution for the application.

Power protection System for network closets and small offices 42

HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

NCR SPECIAL FEATURE

Eaton has global expertise in many areas of electrical business: power distribution and circuit protection backup power protection control and automation lighting and security structural solutions and wiring devices solutions for harsh and hazardous environments engineering services With more than 100 years of experience in electrical power management, Eaton is positioned through its global solutions to answer today’s most critical electrical power management challenges. From groundbreaking products to turnkey design and engineering services, critical industries around the globe count on Eaton.

single-source provider. This includes UPSs, surge protective devices, power distribution units (PDUs), remote monitoring, meters, software, connectivity, enclosures, airflow and cable management, lighting and professional services. Its portfolio is designed to fulfil specific customer requirements, complement new or pre-existing environments and deliver comprehensive solutions. Eaton has been safeguarding the critical systems of businesses across the globe from desktop and small network closets to the largest data centres. Eaton solutions provide clean, continuous power to keep business operations flowing. It works with IT and facilities managers to effectively manage power in virtually every business segment, including data centres, retail outlets, healthcare organizations, governmental agencies, manufacturing firms, financial institutions and a wide variety of other applications.

Intelligent power software In the past, UPS power management software was simply tasked with shutting down computers during a power failure. But today’s generation of UPS software from Eaton gives you the tools to accomplish so much more. While Eaton’s best-in-class UPS solutions will protect your equipment against power failures, with Eaton Intelligent Power Manager Software (IPM) your critical systems, and even your entire virtual environment, are backed by high-quality software that will pro-actively take control, consolidate computing resources and if necessary, safely shut down machines. IPM provides users with a wide array of advantages. For starters, it enables remote monitoring and configuration of multiple Eaton UPSs, intelligent power distribution units and local shut-down agents across the network from a single interface, including any PC with a web browser. IPM also includes an auto-discovery feature that provides a fast installation process by automatically detecting devices on the network. The software’s user-definable tree structure allows grouping, access and management of multiple devices across multiple locations and provides an option to view groups of similar devices and all event alerts in a single interface. Furthermore, the software enables the supported hardware devices to be visible, with the ability to edit and configure individual web interfaces while bolstering security with multiple-password protected access levels and secure communication options.

An Eaton 9E UPS

And, combined with its personal service, support and bold thinking, it is answering tomorrow’s needs today. Over the years, Eaton’s innovative portfolio has grown, including solutions from Best Power, B-Line, MGE Office Protection Systems, Phoenixtec, Powerware, Santak and Wright Line. Its products and solutions serve the needs of institutional, government, utility, commercial, residential, IT and data centre markets worldwide. Eaton’s quality portfolio of power products for network closet, server room, data centre and multitenant data centre applications is comprehensive and offers power management solutions from a A server room by Eaton www.hope-mag.com

Rwanda today has gained from the struggle 23 years ago and looks to the future with hope and optimism. Credit to the men and women who participated in the fight for the country's freedom.

TEDMER RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

TEDMER Rwanda will move to the Special Economic Zone next year

TEDMER to export Made-in-Rwanda building materials to EAC and Europe ff TEDMER Rwanda, a specialized trading company of architectural and building materials, is planning to start exporting its products to East Africa and even Europe.

et up in 2015, Tedmer Rwanda is a daughter of Tedmer International Trade Company Ltd in Turkey. It supplies mainly construction materials and agricultural equipment. Initially, the company imported materials made by some 25 top manufacturers in Turkey to showcase them and boost the construction sector in Rwanda.

“After one year of showcasing, we decided that the products should be manufactured here,” explains Kadir Gök, General Manager of TEDMER Rwanda. “We wanted to compete with the Chinese material which is very cheap, and bringing everything from Turkey would be very costly.”

HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

TEDMER RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

Kadir Gök General Manager of TEDMER Rwanda

But Tedmer Rwanda is already thinking big and wants to go beyond the country’s borders. To prepare the ground, the company will be participating in trade shows across the East African region to promote its Made-in-Rwanda products.

World-class Turkish companies

“The plan is that after we move to the Special Economic Zone next year, we can start exporting to Burundi, the DR Congo and Uganda,” Gök explains. “Afterwards, we can also target Europe.”

The company’s objective is to be a main solution partner and a supply centre for the construction and agriculture sectors, supplying all East African countries with quality products at optimum prices and high stock availability.

Tedmer Rwanda currently operates all around East Africa, mainly in Rwanda and Tanzania, as an exclusive distributor for world-class Turkish companies. It also manufactures pressed doors locally.

Its construction materials range includes iron and steel wire; PVC and aluminum doors, windows and partitions; press doors; glass, gypsum, plaster boards; ceramic tiles and other bath and toilet materials; interior decoration materials; solar heaters; mechanical and electrical hand tools; cutting and grinding discs; isolation mastics; paint brushes; electric cables and other materials. Tedmer also deals in agricultural equipment such us, tractors, cultivators, power tillers, motor pumps, and garden equipment.

Some of the pressed doors manufactured by TEDMER Rwanda www.hope-mag.com

CELEBRATING 23 YEARS OF LIBERATION

CELEBRATING 23 YEARS OF LIBERATION Archievements in the struggle for freedom and dignity. The Government has enhanced the political, social and economic wellfare of all Rwandans.

Celebrating 23 Years Of Liberation

SP Petrol Station Kigali: Poids Lourds Avenue, Remera I, II & III, Gatsata, Gikondo, Kanombe, City centre, Commercial centre, Nyamirambo, Nyabugogo I & II, Up-country: Muhanga, Huye, Rusizi I & II, Musanze, Kayonza, Ryabega, Ngoma I & II, Rubavu. P.O. Box 144 Kigali-Rwanda, Tel: +250 788306232, +250 788306233, Email:info@sp.co.rw

VISION FUND SPECIAL FEATURE

�Before 2014, Jeannette Batekereze was trying to earn a living by selling local beverages at her house, but it wasn’t easy. Married with six children and with two other dependents in her care, she hardly managed to get food on the table of her home in Rebero village in Gatsibo district.

VFR Mpozanguhoze group poses together with the leader in-front. and VFR loan officer with the group

Thanks to VisionFund

Gatsibo group prospers and takes care of poor children

ut three years ago, things changed when she got to know VisionFund Rwanda, one of the country’s biggest micro-finance companies which gives small loans to poor people to improve their lives and ensure a better future for their children. Batekereze and six other women formed the Mpozanguhoze group in 2014 to be able to work with VisionFund Rwanda, with the aim of becoming less dependent on their husbands.

selling clothes and beverages,... Thanks to the loans from VisionFund Rwanda, members have been able to buy plots of land, acquire sewing machines, renovate their houses and connect them to electricity so that their children can do their homework in the living room and no longer in the kitchen as was the case when they used candles or kerosene to light the house. The leader

of Mpozanguhoze was even able to pay for computer classes for her husband, who now has obtained his certificate.What is remarkable about this group, however, is that they also want to share their good fortune with others. That is why among the new members there are many youth, recruited by the group’s founders to teach them how to do business instead of wasting their lives with alcohol and drugs. They also have taken orphans and children from extremely poor families under their wings, which they brought together in a group called Ihoreremwana (Don’t Cry Child). Every six months, the members of Mpozanguhoze visit these children to see how they are doing and pay for whatever is needed, including their school fees. Thus, VisionFund Rwanda’s small loans haven’t just helped the Mpozanguhoze group, but through them also even more disadvantaged children. Which is exactly the spirit in which the fund was created.

Looking back on it today, she thinks it was the best decision of her life. Starting with an initial loan of Rwf 100,000, Batekereze slowly managed to increase her profits and expand her business. Now in her seventh loan cycle with VFR (she fully paid back the previous six, as reimbursement is a prerequisite to apply for a new loan), her life has been completely transformed. She has bought goats and pigs, and sells her beverages in the market; as a result, she is able to buy enough food for her children and pay their school fees, and has even started to renovate her house. The loans from VisionFund Rwanda had an equally big impact on the other founding members of Mpozanguhoze, and it wasn’t long before others wanted to join the group. Today, there are 24 members and 99 children. They are involved in different kinds of business such as growing sorghum and Irish potatoes, rearing goats, 52

Jeannette Batekereze has a Banana plantation rears goats cattle and pigs HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

KNEYA PORTS AUTHORITY SPECIAL FEATURE

KPA staffs join President Kagame in wetland park umuganda

President Paul Kagame plants during the Umuganda last month

ffAs President Kagame sought to emphasize the importance of team work when it comes to the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s development, staff of the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) joined him and residents of Kicukiro and Gasabo districts in Kigali for the umuganda of May Cynthia Kamau KPA Country manager ( center ) led KPA staff in exemplary team work on the day 54

HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

KNEYA PORTS AUTHORITY SPECIAL FEATURE

Cynthia Kamau KPA Country manager ( right ) with the community at the Eco-tourism site dig during the Umuganda

he exercise focused on preparing the ground for the future Nyandungu Urban Wetland Ecotourism Park.

The KPA employees and other members of the Kenyan community living and working in Rwanda, led by KPA’s Country Manager Cynthia Kamau, joined in the activities that included digging soil and transporting it to places in the soon to be established gardens in the park, and removing weeds from the area. President Kagame thanked the participants and encouraged young people to embrace it. “We should not let the strength of our young men and women go to waste,” he said. Financed by the government’s Green Fund (FONERWA) with Rwf 2.4 billion, the Nyandungu Urban Wetland Ecotourism Park seeks to increase biodiversity, reduce flood risk, raise awareness on wetland conservation, create green jobs, and promote tourism.

KPA staff joined residents of the Nyandungu wetland area to do last month's Umuganda

Located in a wetland in the sectors of Nyarugunga in Kicukiro District and Ndera of Gasabo District along the special economic zone, the park will have a network of paths, roads, boardwalks and bridges in marshy areas, nature viewing areas and picnic areas. According to projections, it should generate over Rwf 1bn in profit in the first 12 years of operation, or some Rwf 83m every year. www.hope-mag.com

RWANDA LAW REFORM COMMISSION SPECIAL FEATURE

� Rwanda Law Reform Commission might not be the best known public institution in the country, but it plays a very important role in ensuring legal and judicial harmony – making sure that laws are properly drafted, that they don’t contradict each other or the Constitution, and continuously reviewing laws to ensure they stay relevant.

ope Magazine spoke to the Commission’s Chairman, John Gara, who among other things talked about the gargantuan task that is the periodic comprehensive law review which is currently in progress.

Can you briefly explain what the Rwanda Law Reform Commission does? The Law Reform Commission has a number of different but integrated functions, and is structured to accomplish those. The Commission has about 62 staff, serving two main departments. The first one is responsible legislative drafting and translation. All laws that go through parliament and all Ministerial, Prime Ministerial and Presidential Orders have to pass through the RLRC first. The basic process is that institutions prepare the first draft and send it to the commission for revision before it goes to cabinet for approval. We review those drafts, which means we make some changes and adjustments to make sure it is drafted properly but we also check that it complies with the constitution, or if it’s an order with the parent law. So basically the commission looks at all the legalities. Once we finish the process, the institution can send the draft to Cabinet, and if they propose any changes to it there, it comes back to the RLRC to make those changes. The second department of the RLRC is the law reform and law revision department. What this department does essentially is to continuously review all laws that are currently in place and see whether any of them need reform. If that is the case, we would either initiate something ourselves or write to the relevant institution to inform them that that law has a problem or that there have been complaints about it. Apart from the laws in place, we also look at possible gaps because law reform doesn’t only involve reforming what is there, but also creating what should be there.

Can you please elaborate more on the process of law revision? Actually, we hope soon to embark on a comprehensive law revision; it is something that is being done in most of our neighboring countries, but it would be the first time in Rwanda. What this 56

John Gara chairman of the Rwanda Law Reform Commission

Rwanda Law Reform Commission to fully review legislation within 5 years means is that every five years or so, you look at all amendments made to laws by Ministers and Parliament, and you consolidate them. It also involves looking at laws that might have become obsolete or outdated, and you update them. Currently, the country is in a peculiar position because we have laws from colonial times that are still applicable, yet virtually nobody knows them. These laws are scattered because we don’t have a compendium of Rwandan laws. So far, the RLRC has been making an inventory from different resources and scattered places, and the second stage will be revising the laws. At that moment, there will be several options – for example, you can set a cut-off line, where you simply repeal all laws that are older than a certain date, or you can look at them case by case and decide which ones are still useful and which ones you don’t want to keep. Yet that is not for the Commission to decide; what we will do is write a proposal and see what the policy-makers say. Whatever the case will be, this won’t take a few weeks or few months – it’s a hug exercise because there are thousands and thousands of laws in place and you have to make sure they don’t contradict each other.

Can you give us an overview of what the RLRC has achieved since its creation? I have been the Chairman of the Commission for five years, and I joined it when it had just been created. Back then, we had staff of about 12 lawyers; it was a completely different kind of structure and we were basically looking at law reforms. So as we started, and seeing the work required, the mandate of the RLRC changed to a bigger number of functions.

HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

Consequently we had to reorganize the Commission to get the structure I mentioned earlier.

What does the commission want to achieve in the next three to five years? First, I would like to see the revised edition of the Rwandan laws, to me that is a huge priority – to have this edition where we have all the laws consolidated and online available to the population. Secondly, we would like to have a system where the drafting of laws is centralized at the RLRC, rather than having institutions prepare drafts which they send to us. We would also like to see more publications on different topics that are of interest to the public, and finally having more good, clean laws in the same style available to the population.

In that context, what is the Commission doing to make sure the public is aware of the laws? The RLRC has engaged in a number of activities such as a legal awareness team which sensitizes the population about for example matrimonial and succession laws, those that concern them in their day-to-day life. It all depends on the audience – we are not likely to go to umuganda and talk about the cybercrime law. We have radio and TV programs as well as a toll-free line which anybody who has a question on any law can call. So those are ways of creating awareness. But we still want to do more – talk about topics that we think are relevant to society and have articles written about them.

Celebrating 23 Years Of Liberation From Liberation to Reconstruction Unity and Reconciliation Rwanda today personifies hope and a Good Governance Model on the African continent

SINOTRUK RWANDA SPECIAL FEATURE

Sinotruk sales & services centre a truck experience like no other “We comfortably handle almost all problems including panel beating, engine service, and tire repairs,” assures Robert Rwamukaga, the supervisor at the Sinotruk garage. And customers are guaranteed to be satisfied, as the experience at Sinotruk Rwanda Sales & Services Centre is unlike anything you will find at other truck-repair facilities in the country, as the supervisor himself can vouch for. “In the past I used to repair other makes of trucks, and often they would be out of service for months because we had to wait for spare parts to be brought from abroad; that was really frustrating for the owners,” Rwamukaga says. “But with Sinotruk things are different: we have all the required spare parts, if necessary we can even re-assemble an entire engine.” The centre also offers expert maintenance and servicing, which is vital for heavy-duty trucks given the nature of the work they are used for. Xing Jianzie Country manager of Asia Machinery Investments shows that spare parts are available at the Sinotruk garage

ffDespite a booming construction sector and a transport sector in rapid expansion, finding a reliable supplier of heavy-duty trucks in Rwanda has for a long time been like looking for a needle in a haystack, whereas importing new or second-hand trucks from abroad is a risky venture since maintenance and spare parts might be in short supply.

et that has changed since the arrival on the Rwandan market of Asia Machinery Investments Ltd, which owns the Sinotruk Rwanda Sales & Services Centre in the Gishushu area in Kigali. The company is the only authorized distributor of Sinotruk’s Howo series of heavy-duty trucks, machinery and spare parts in Rwanda and the region. A daughter company of the China National Heavy Duty Truck Group Corp. Ltd. (CNHTC), Sinotruk (Hong Kong) Ltd is one of the largest truck manufacturers in China, headquartered in Jinan, the capital city of Shandong province. CNHTC was the first domestic manufacturer of heavy duty trucks, building its first one in 1960. With the Howo series, Sinotruk offers a wide variety of vehicles including dump trucks, tractor trucks, cement 58

mixers, military and sprinkler trucks, as well as a light truck, all of which can be obtained at the Sinotruk Rwanda Sales & Services Centre (some types have to be pro-ordered). Not only that, the centre also offers excellent after-sales service, including maintenance and repair, with a guarantee that spare parts are available.

Sinotruk is expanding its operations in Rwanda and has opened a spare parts shop in Nyabugogo

They have a reliable partner in the China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec), which supplies them with high-quality engine oil that suits the requirements of trucks. Thanks to the convenience of local sales and servicing of trucks, Asia Machinery Investments is doing brisk business in Rwanda, as its country manager Xing Jianzie attests.

Sinotruk Technicians Comfortably handle almost all problems HOPE MAGAZINE JUNE ISSUE 76

“We are gaining the confidence from the market, which has motivated us to expand our operations in Rwanda,” Xing explains. “We have started implementing our long-term plans which include acquiring land in the Special Economic Zone to construct a bigger service centre. And we have also opened a second spare part shop in Nyabugogo.”

HOWO TRUCKS NOW AVAILABLE IN RWANDA

ASIA MACHINERY INVESTMENTS LTD SINOTRUK RWANDA SALES & SERVICES CENTER

Mobile: +250 784 625 038, Gishushu area next to Accord hotel, KG628ST, Gasabo district, Kigali-Rwanda, Email. sinotruckrwanda@gmail.com