The Rwanda Bureau of Standards (RBS) has partnered with The New Times to promote quality and safety standards in the country through publication of a monthly journal to sensitise the public.

The first edition of the Standards Journal will be published next week on Tuesday August 6 by The New Times and will focus on safety standards in the construction industry, the fastest growing sector in Rwanda’s economy.

Mark Cyubahiro Bagabe, the RBS director general, said in an interview on Tuesday that the campaign aimed at sensitising stakeholders in the sector and the general public to adopt and adhere to best practices in construction so as to build infrastructure "that is not only safe, but durable”. 

This, he said, can only be achieved by making high quality construction materials and ensuring they are used properly.  

"It is not just about making good materials; how they are used also matters a lot in building safe and durable structures,” he said.

Bagabe said it was the responsibility of everybody, including manufactures, distributors, retailers, consumers and financial institutions, to ensure quality standards in the industry because weak infrastructure can hurt everybody.

He said even banks lose money when borrowers present poor quality buildings as collateral for huge loans because of shortage of competent valuers. "When they fail to pay the loans (sometimes deliberately), the bank attaches the property that turns out to be below the stated value. I call upon banks and all the stakeholders to take interest and participate in this campaign,” he said.