Let’s harness our untapped resources

THE dictum about ‘living in poverty while in abundance’ has yet again come to haunt us. Going by the immense untapped natural resources identified by the Rwanda Governance Board (RGB) across the country, one would be right to blame us for some of the woes we are facing as a people. Imagine how the life of Rwandans would be if these resources were exploited; it would mean reduced poverty, more jobs, lower dependence levels and better standards of living for Rwandans. RGB has identified the untapped riches; the onus now is on the local governments to interest the private sector to exploit these resources. Besides creating jobs and improving people’s income, this would expand local authorities’ revenue stream and boost tax collections. Some of the resources, like tourism sites, do not need a lot of capital to develop, so local authorities should not use lack of money as an excuse. However, the central government should support them to develop the resources by putting in place the necessary policies and laws without delay (as has been the case with the issuance of municipal bonds law that has spent close to three years in the works). This is what the country needs to drive its medium-term growth blueprint, the Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy (EDPRS II); create jobs for Rwandans and to significantly reduce poverty. We are lucky that all the untapped natural resources identified by RGB have potential to create jobs in big numbers, with a huge trickle-down effect. What else can the country ask for? All we need is plans to develop these resources and call in the private sector to fund and exploit them and improve the lives of the people.

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Let’s harness our untapped resources