The government has injected up to Rwf20 billion in public transport as one of the interventions meant to fix the shortage of buses and long queues at bus stations in the City of Kigali.

The changes include the government’s move to buy 200 buses from Chinese manufacturers and provide them at a subsidised price for potential investors in public transport.

1. Govt orders new buses

Out of 300 buses needed in Kigali, the government has bought 200. Half of them will be available by the end of the week, Minister of Infrastructure Jimmy Gasore said, adding that the remainder will be available before the end of February 2024.

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"Currently, we have about 400 buses countrywide. And we found that asking investors to buy 200 more buses at once would be very hard for them, so we decided to buy them, so the investors can buy them at an affordable price,” explained the State Minister in charge of National Treasure in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Richard Tusabe.

The government has also waived the tax required to buy, and lobbied commercial banks to offer the investors loans at lower interest rates, Tusabe said, adding that the new buses will cost around Rwf20 billion.

The Business Development Fund (BDF) has also agreed to sponsor up to 70 per cent of the value of the collateral required by the banks.

Minister of Infrastructure Jimmy Gasore said the government has ordered up to 200 new buses, which interested investors will be able to buy at a subsidised price.

2. Public transport opened up

The new regulations have opened up the public transport sector to anyone with a bus that meets the required standards.

Previously, the City of Kigali would call for investors or companies to bid for the provision of public transport.

The buses that are allowed to carry passengers in the city should have at least 29 seats.

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Bigger buses that carry 70 or more passengers will be given priority on main roads in the city to ensure adequate passenger service.

All operators are required to have cashless payment systems in place.

3. No more monopolised lines

As more stakeholders have been encouraged to invest in the public transport sector, Gasore said no company or operator would monopolise a route.

"Any individual who will express interest in investing in transport will find a route to operate on. The City of Kigali needs a lot of buses and there will no longer be routes served by one operator or company,” he said.

There are at least two or more transport operators per route in order to allow competition and motivate them to deliver good service to passengers, Gasore said.

Investors can also identify underserved routes and request the authorities the licence to operate in them, he said.

4. Unlicensed seven-seater vehicles no longer allowed

The government has terminated a directive that allowed owners of seven-seater vehicles to use them to ferry passengers without a transport operator licence after introducing new changes in Kigali’s public transport.

The move, which was announced in early October, allowed the owners of unlicensed seven-seater cars to carry passengers at a negotiated fare and without paying taxes.

Minister Gasore said it was a temporary measure introduced to deal with the shortage of buses and long queues at bus stations, but the government has now taken further long-term measures to fix the issues in public transport in the City of Kigali.

5. Subsidies to bus companies to stop

After the new buses have been deployed to the roads, government subsidies will stop. The subsidies were introduced to cushion bus companies from the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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"We believe the subsidy has helped a lot since the Covid pandemic, but we need to have a sustainable solution,” Tusabe said.

"Once we have provided sufficient buses at an affordable price, there won’t be any need for subsidies, and we will continue to support investors in this sector in more ways other than through subsidies.”