City of Kigali and Rwanda National Police recently announced alternative routes for road users to facilitate the flow of traffic during the 27th African Union Summit that starts today in Kigali.

All roads that connect to KBC roundabout next to Kigali Convention Center are blocked. Road users from Kabindi junction heading to Gisementi or other areas along that direction will diverge to the new route before KBC and reroute to the new road connecting to the new roundabout at Minijust (Ministry of Justice). Those going to the airport, will enter through the junction after Gasaraba and those existing will head straight to the new roundabout opposite MAGERWA.

Kigali is a rapidly growing city of 1.1 million residents, something that requires city planners to establish new roads through suburbs to ease on the traffic but also make the city safe for pedestrians.

While this is necessary in every developing country, Police should use the mass media available and social media to communicate such decisions so that the public plan accordingly.

Such communication should also come early enough to avoid inconveniencing the public. Early information allows people to plan their movement and not bump into barricades here and there. 

We should avoid scenarios like what happened on July 6th, when people woke up to find several roads around the city center closed without prior notice. As the country continues its 2020 vision development agenda, it is paramount that responsible authorities explain to the ordinary people why certain decisions are taken.