Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente on Tuesday, January 23, presented key achievements registered under Rwanda’s seven-year government programme, also known as the National Strategy for Transformation (NST1), which is expected to come to an end in June. He was speaking during the first day of the 19th National Dialogue Council, Umushyikirano, a forum during which Rwandans discuss issues of national importance, including national development, unity, and youth empowerment. ALSO READ: Umushyikirano 19: We shall defend Rwanda at all cost While more work needs to be done to expedite the targets that were set seven years ago, Ngirente told participants at the annual gathering that Rwandans have moved to become capable and skilled people with quality standards of living as well as a stable and secure society. In no particular order, here are some of the key achievements highlighted: Economic growth For the last seven years, Rwanda’s economic growth kept a positive trend, and according to Ngirente, the country’s economy grew at an average rate of 6.9 per cent from 2017 to the third quarter of 2023. ALSO READ: 2024: Rwanda to lead economic growth in East Africa Going forward, he asserted, the economy is projected to grow at pre-COVID-19 levels of over 7 per cent. In 2024, the country’s economy is projected to grow to 7 per cent, up from 6.3 per cent in 2023, ranking first in East Africa and third among African countries with high economic growth prospects, according to the ‘World Economic Situation and Prospects 2024’, a recent report by the United Nations. To ease the tax burden and improve the tax base and compliance, Ngirente said the government initiated several tax reforms. The reforms, he explained, include central government taxes such as corporate income tax (CIT) reduced from 30 per cent to 28 per cent, exempted Value Added Tax (VAT) on rice and maize flour, and some fees previously charged by decentralised entities that have been scrapped. “To lessen the impact of the increase of prices at the international market, he pointed out that the government put in place a subsidy programme on fuel. “Public transport especially in the City of Kigali has been revamped, with an additional 200 buses, among these, 100 are already operational while the rest (100) will arrive in the country next month.” Agriculture According to the Premier, the application of fertiliser almost doubled and reached 70.3 kg per hectare every year, against 32 kg in 2017. He said that to ensure local production of fertilisers, a fertiliser blending plant was launched in December 2023 with a capacity to produce 100,000 tonnes of fertiliser per year. Based in Bugesera, the Rwanda Fertilizer Blending Plant envisages increasing crop yields by 40 per cent. This, according to plant owners and the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI), could be accomplished by blending fertilisers tailored to the specific soil and crop nutrient requirements. ALSO READ: How Rwanda's new fertiliser plant could boost agriculture The plant will be importing fertiliser raw materials and blending them locally. Ngirente also said as it stands, Rwanda is self-sufficient in seed production. This means that the country no longer imports seeds, particularly of maize, wheat, and soya. The Prime Minister also said that cultivated land almost doubled since 2017, from 48,000 hectares to more than 71,000 hectares in 2023. Also increased, he said, is the milk production from about 700,000 litres in 2017 to over a million litres per year. The trajectory is expected to shoot up as Rwanda looks to unveil a milk powder processing factory, with a capacity of producing 650,000 litres per day. The plant, Ngirente said, is nearing completion and will be based in Nyagatare. He also hinted to its inauguration in April. Infrastructure On the front of road networks, Ngirente said new national and district roads of more than 1,600 kilometres were constructed in the past seven years. Some of these, he said, include Base-Rukomo-Nyagatare, Kagitumba-Kayonza-Rusumo, Ngoma-Bugesera Nyanza, Huye-Kibeho, and Pindura-Bweyeye. Feeder roads of 3,700 kilometres were also built and repaired across the country. According to Ngirente, public lights have been installed on more than 2,160 kilometres of highways and cities. During the same period, more than 1.5 million new households were connected to electricity, raising the ratio of connectivity from 34.4 per cent in 2017 to 74 per cent in 2023. This means that the ratio of connectivity more than doubled. Ngirente told a packed hall at the Kigali Convention Center (KCC) that water production per day has more than doubled to 330,000 cubic metres, surpassing the original target of 303,000 cubic metres. Education In the area of education, Ngirente said that more than 27,000 classrooms were built. “This played a key role in reducing overcrowding and long distances to and from school. “The number of students in one classroom reduced from 80 in 2017 to 55 students. Vocational and Technical Schools (TSS) continued to be promoted. Currently, there are 563 TSS across the country and 392 out of 416 sectors have TSS schools. The number of qualified teachers has increased, bringing down the student-teacher ratio to 57:1 in 2023 from 62:1 in 2017.” From 2022, Ngirente said teachers’ salaries were increased; primary and secondary school teachers got a salary increase of 88 per cent and 40 per cent respectively, based on their qualifications. “School feeding programme in primary and secondary schools throughout the country is implemented to curb the school dropout and improve student performance.” Health During the seven years, six new hospitals were constructed. This he said, is in addition to 52 existing hospitals. The new hospitals include Gatunda, Gatonde, Munini, Nyabikenke, Byumba (overhaul rehabilitation) and Nyarugenge. “The number of mothers giving birth in health facilities reached 93 per cent while malaria-related deaths decreased from 427 in 2017 to 35 in 2023,” he said.
