The government is planning to spend Rwf783.5 billion on climate action, equivalent to 10 percent of the Rwf7,796.3 billion total budget for the 2026/27 fiscal year, according to a citizen guide released by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) on August 12. The proportion of climate-related interventions, MINECOFIN explained, has increased from over 8 percent in 2025/26 to 10 percent in 2026/27. ALSO READ: 10 ways Rwanda is spending on climate adaptation in new budget The allocation is expected to support activities including environmental protection, climate resilience and low-carbon development. Its largest share (81 percent) will be spent on adaptation, which means building resilience to climate change effects. ALSO READ: Rwanda Faces $7 Billion Funding Gap to Implement Climate Action Plan The citizen guide document indicates that 5 percent of the money allocated to climate change will be spent on mitigation, which includes actions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, such as renewable energy and energy efficiency. Another 7 percent will support projects that contribute to both adaptation and mitigation, while 7 percent more will be spent in areas with limited or no direct climate benefits. Commenting on the citizen guide, Dieudonné Niyogushima, co-founder of Exodus Farm Ltd, which grows vegetables, said more investment should be made in large-scale irrigation. ALSO READ: How climate change effects are leaving farmers vulnerable “We need to have large-scale irrigation sites,” he said. “Why do we always rely on rain-fed production for maize, beans, potatoes and other crops? Today, it is clear that the old practices are no longer productive,” he added. Christian Muragijimana, a Senior Research Analyst at Climate Adaptation Research & Consulting Rwanda and a PlanAdapt Fellow, said allocating 10 percent of the 2026/27 budget to climate resilience is a commendable commitment. He said the allocation reflects the seriousness with which the country continues to approach climate resilience as part of national development. ALSO READ: Climate change could erode 7% of Rwanda’s GDP by 2050 “What I particularly appreciate is the way climate resilience is increasingly being treated not as a separate environmental concern, but as part of our wider development, economic and planning agenda,” he said. Muragijimana said the budget allocation presents an opportunity to deepen and consolidate the progress already under way. “Priority should continue to go to climate-resilient agriculture and food systems, water security, ecosystem and landscape restoration, flood and landslide resilience, climate-resilient infrastructure, and stronger early-warning and more anticipatory action-driven systems,” he noted. “The government of Rwanda remains committed to addressing climate change and promoting environmental sustainability as part of its development agenda,” reads a statement from the ministry. ALSO READ: Rwanda unveils $11bn climate action plan “This upward adjustment is primarily driven by additional allocations to climate-related programmes in the environment and infrastructure sectors,” it went on.
