Information Communication Technology has been placed among the key facilitators for national growth and development. This has been due to heavy investments in the sector by both government and the private sector. With increased investments in the sector, there has been a relative increase in gains especially in 2014.

Statistics show that the sector attracted about 45 per cent of all foreign direct investments in the country and contributed 3 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the last quarter of the year and is projected to contribute about 4 per cent in the coming year.

The sector’s contribution to GDP was ahead of agriculture, and mining exports combined and was beyond Africa’s average which stands at 1.1 per cent while in advanced economies ICT contribution to GDP is set at 3.7 per cent

ICT Uptake

A report by the Ministry of Youth and ICT in collaboration with the National Institute of Statistics and the Rwanda Development Board published early last year showed that the population was embracing ICT going by the mobile and internet penetration.

It showed that over 63 per cent of the population had acquired mobile phones easing access to services like mobile money which in turn increased financial inclusion. Mobile money subscribers across all networks stood at over 2.5 million which helped reach out to the previously unbanked population.

Internet penetration stood at over 20 per cent up from about 8.4 per cent in 2012.

Other than the financial sector, various government sectors have also increased their affinity for the sector’s services which have proved to be worthy investments.

Through the ICT in education initiative, the education sector has lined itself up to make the most of the benefits of ICT to increase both the quality and access to education.

The Ministry of Education is currently in the process of changing its One Laptop Per Child strategy to smart classrooms to increase access to improved technology.

The ministry has taken to encouraging the private sector to invest into the sector in ways such as internet provision, solar panels in schools that do not have electricity and supplying electronics among other ways.

Sectors such as health care and agriculture have also been noted to embrace ICT to boost access to their services as well as quality.

Progress made this year

Most notable in 2014 were the nature and size of investments undertaken by the government and the private sector in ICT.

In November, the much awaited 4th Generation Long-Term Evolution (4GLTE) internet network offering the fastest wireless communication on high-speed data for mobile phones and devices such as modems and routers was rolled out.

The high speed internet was a result of an investment by the Government and Korea Telecom (KT), the largest telecommunications service provider in South Korea, for the establishment of Olleh Rwanda Network.

Under the terms of agreement, the Korean firm brought in expertise and invested $140 million (Rwf98 billion), while the government lay a 3,000km-national fibre optic cable.

The launch marked the start of an ambitious target of having 95 per cent of Rwandans connected to the internet by 2017.

Though the technology has been perceived to be expensive and unaffordable, it is expected that competitiveness among local retailers and economies of scale will bring the cost down in the near future.

2014 also saw the government take the digitisation of government services to the next level on the launch of an initiative dubbed Rwanda Online platform which is courtesy of a partnership between the government and a private firm, Rwanda Online Platform Limited.

The platform which is currently under construction by the private firm with the help of partners from Singapore in conjunction with local IT companies will avail a total of 100 government services online in the projects life of 37 months.

The first phase of the project kicked off in August with 10 select institutions being automated by May in the coming year.

On the regional front, the Northern Corridor comprising Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda scrapped off roaming charges between Kenya and Rwanda in November under the one area network initiative, with Uganda expected to come on board soon.

The progress was received with excitement by businesses who regularly commute across the region as it eased the cost incurred.

The regional one area network is expected to expand next year with the launch of cross-border mobile money transfer and scrapping of roaming charges on short messages and internet usage across the region.

The efforts by the government to attract foreign investments in the ICT sector were reaped in November last year following the announcement that a Latin-America multinational, POSTIVO BGH which manufactures laptops, computers, tablets, and other electronic gadgets, was in the process of putting up a production plant in Kigali.

The firm is expected to raise the country’s ICT profile, contribute to creating a pool of local ICT experts and produce affordable ICT equipment.

Commenting on the development, Patrick Nsenga, a local ICT entrepreneur involved in sale and installation of ICT infrastructure said the sector’s development was also impactful in terms of offering employment opportunities to nationals and transforming people’s lives.

"If you compare the number of young people involved in ICT over the years, you will notice that every year, the sector employs more people,” Nsenga said.

He projected that the more ministries and institutions will this new year incorporate ICT into their activities and their service delivery.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw