Despite the hiccups caused by the current regional fuel crisis, even the greatest pessimist cannot fail to acknowledge how the Rwandan economy has made considerable strides within a short time.

The commendable steps the economy has taken can best be analysed from a multidimensional sense, considering the exquisite performances exhibited by the cornerstone institutions in the private sector in partnership with the investment promotion agency.

The export performance as of January to August 2008 indicates a grand total of USD306,743,845, of revenues from a wide range of exports collected from various sectors, such as agriculture, mining, tourism.

During the end of year evaluation conducted mid-December by the Ministry of Minerals and Natural Resources, the Minister of state Vincent Karega revealed that the mining sector in 2008 alone fetched over USD 90 million and expected to make 100 by the end of December the same year.

A boom has also been registered in some focal industries like the construction, hospitality and the financial sector. The development of these industries both acts as a fuel for economic development at the same time as an indicator of progress.

For instance, the boom that has been experienced in the financial sector like new banking institutions with cutting-edge products fosters investment.

The blossoming hospitality industry experienced in the country is a catalyst for the development of the tourism sector, which is one of the leading foreign exchange earners in the country.   

It has also been recently reported that the remittances received from the Diaspora have increased by 19.7 percent from USD103.03 million (Rwf57.3 billion) in 2007 to USD128.24 million (Rwf71.3 billion) as of November last year.

This was disclosed by Francois Kanimba, the head of the National Bank of Rwanda (NBR), who further said that the data was reliably captured from specialised institutions like Western Union, Moneygram.

The remittances obtained from the Diaspora have always significantly been used to construct houses, make investments, pay school fees and generally improve people’s conditions of living. This among other initiatives should be promoted in order to propel the nation’s economy is further.

Ends