Rwanda's healthcare sector last week surpassed 100 kidney transplants since the launch of the Living Donor Kidney Transplant Program in May 2023. The transplants have been carried out at King Faisal Hospital (KFH) since 2023, following years of government efforts to make the service available locally. The programme has been implemented through collaboration between local specialists and international experts, particularly from the United States. ALSO READ: How a kidney transplant saved Nambaje’s life In March this year, Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva told Parliament that Rwanda had saved an estimated $800,000 (about Rwf1.17 billion) since introducing local kidney transplant services. He also highlighted broader progress in specialised healthcare, noting that advanced services previously unavailable in Rwanda, including kidney transplants, bone marrow transplants and Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans for cancer diagnosis, are now accessible within the country. ALSO READ: Over Rwf1bn saved through local kidney transplants Despite the achievements, Nsengiyumva warned of a rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Cases of hypertension more than doubled, increasing from 58,194 in 2019 to 134,823 in 2025, while the number of patients with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes rose from 11,891 to 21,164. To address the trend, the government has decentralised screening and treatment services to primary healthcare facilities and expanded community outreach programmes, improving access to medicines and long-term care. A kidney transplant is a surgical procedure in which a healthy kidney from a living or deceased donor is implanted in a person whose kidneys have stopped functioning properly. ALSO READ: First kidney transplant surgeries successfully performed in Rwanda Kidney transplants are generally performed on patients with end-stage kidney disease, or kidney failure, when the kidneys can no longer meet the body's needs.
