‘Happy hour’ may be suspended at bars and restaurants across the country, but that should not stop consumers from consuming alcohol in their homes.

The leading domestic beverage firms, Skol and Bralirwa, have teamed up with a local delivery company, Vuba Vuba Africa to commence home deliveries of alcoholic beverages.

The move follows the government’s declaration of a countywide lockdown, only allowing essential services such as hygiene, medicinal and food selling services to remain operational.

The lockdown is part of the efforts to combat the spread of the virus, which has reached 50 confirmed cases in Rwanda.

The Head of Media Relations at Skol, Karim Tuyishime, told The New Times that the brewery was teaming up with Vuba Vuba Africa to ensure that their clientele continues protecting themselves and their loved ones while at the same time enjoying a beer of their choice in the comfort of their homes.

"We have a team specifically working with Vuba Vuba on this but first, we ensured that they are availed all the protective gear and that they are following all the rules regarding protecting themselves and others during this time,” he said.

Officials within Bralirwa declined to comment but a source within the brewery told The New Times that the company has not been left behind in this venture.

By Friday mid-morning, the brewery’s sales team had instructions to distribute to as many suppliers as possible all over the country.

The company will also be teaming with Vuba Vuba on this venture.

"The team was instructed to supply every supermarket, mini market and to go down to the shops that are selling food in the local neighbourhoods so that whoever wants a drink has easy access as long as they are taking it home,” he said.

Strict rules

The Managing Director of Vuba Vuba Africa, Albert Munyabugingo, confirmed the partnership and pointed out that strict measures had been put in place to protect their clients.

"The boxes in which we carry these goods are thoroughly cleaned from time to time. Our suppliers are given hand sanitisers and gloves but we mostly require them to wash their hands at every venue where they are picking drink or food,” he said.

More options

Upon the government’s ban on unnecessary movements, many Rwandans have opted for online services including shopping for food items.

Murukali.com is e-commerce that has been delivering grocery, office equipment and day to day necessary products.

The platform has recorded a significant demand for food products and toiletries.

"People are ordering for rice, vegetables, fruits and toiletries in large numbers,” said Yvette Uwimpaye, Murukali.com’s Chief Executive Officer.

She said they have enough products to satisfy the market and source for the ones they don’t have in their stores from other reliable vendors.

Upon accessing their website, one can easily spot products and their prices, which can be ordered and delivered at a fee of Rwf1, 500 in Kigali.

That is slightly different from other online shopping platforms such as DMM.HeHe – which works with local businesses to deliver groceries to clients.

"Fees range from Rwf800 to Rwf2, 500 depending on the urgency (requested by the customer) or location, for now, we only deliver in Kigali.” Clarisse Iribagiza, DMM.HeHe’s chief executive told The New Times recently.

She added that delivery time ranges from 30 minutes for medicine and 1-2 hours for groceries which is flexible as the customer can pick a time slot once checking out.