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Players in the construction industry have called for greater efforts to fit apartment buildings with elevators – also known as lifts – arguing that their absence in the storeyed buildings makes it difficult for people with disabilities to access them.

The law of 2012 governing urban planning and building in Rwanda stipulates, in its article 28, that buildings intended for public use shall be built in a manner that allows access and use by persons with disabilities.

Speaking to The New Times, Marie Solange Muhirwa, Chief of Urban Planning at the City of Kigali, said that the Building Code provides that every public or residential building in the category of G+3 and above — meaning that with a ground floor and at least three upper floors — must be equipped with elevators.

Muhirwa said that in buildings that are below G+3 (such as G+2 and G+1), the installation of lifts is optional, but mandatory for buildings with G+3 and above, according to the Building Code.

Underscoring the need for elevators in the multi-storeyed buildings, Muhirwa said that, apart from people with disabilities, even pregnant women have difficulties going up stairs, hence necessitating lift to easily take them to upper floors.

She said that aspects such as lifts and ramps are among the requirements considered prior to granting a construction permit, and an inspection is done to ensure that the property proprietor complied with them.

"When we find out that the building was not fitted with a lift, yet it had to, then we do not give the proprietor an occupational permit until they fulfill the requirements,” she said.

Loopholes in enforcement?

However, many of the apartment blocks in that category are not equipped with elevators, exposing weaknesses in the enforcement of the law.

Yet, there is a deliberate effort to encourage Rwandans to live in apartments, owing to the scarcity of land and growing population.

Fitting buildings with elevators for eased access does not only add value to the property but it also demonstrates inclusiveness, by taking care of the needs of people with disabilities, elderly citizens and those with limited mobility, according to people with knowledge in the construction industry.

Benjamin Ndayisaba, who manages one of the apartment buildings in the upscale neighbourhood of Gacuriro in Gasabo District, which does not have elevators, told The New Times that while the elevators are necessary, many of the properties without them were built before the law came into force.

His apartment block, with 18 units, has three levels (ground floor not inclusive) – a G+3 – was erected before the 2012 legislation which required elevators and ramps for people with disabilities had not yet taken effect.

He said that the construction and occupation permits for the building were granted by the City of Kigali.

"The apartment building was completed in 2011 and started operating in 2012. Fitting a building with a lift or a ramp for people with disabilities was not among the requirements to get construction and occupation permit then,” he said.

Paul Rwigamba, a director at Century Real Estate, a local real estate firm, said that the elevators in apartment buildings are much needed especially for the mobility of people with disabilities and pregnant women.

Generally, he said that the value of the building, especially that with three storeys and above, increases when it is fitted with lifts compared to that which does not have them. The value addition mainly comes with being easily accessible through the lift.

He said that it is difficult to move beyond the first floor in a wheelchair, suggesting that even buildings with a ground floor and two storeys should have a lift, provided that it has more than eight housing units as that implies many tenants.

"In my opinion, technologies have become affordable such that lifts are no longer expensive. For instance, if you install one lift, and then factor the cost of the lift in your rental income for five or seven years, you can recoup the investment,” Rwigamba said.

Emmanuel Ndayisaba, Executive Secretary of the National Council of Persons with Disabilities (NCPD) empahsised that multi-floored buildings without lifts and ramps make it difficult for people with disabilities to access.

He added that modern elevators with a sound system are available on the market and some buildings in the country have already installed them. However, many others are yet to do so.

He called on authorities to look into the issue and ensure that the issue of old buildings not having elevators and ramps be addressed.

"Each lift should have a sound system and braille labels on elevator buttons such as to let a person with vision impairment know which level it is taking them to,” Ndayisaba said.

Rwanda Social Security Board is one of the institutions with many multi-storied buildings across the country.

"We support the initiative to include elevators in apartment buildings. All our [apartment buildings] with 4 floors and above have them,” said Regis Rugemanshuro, RSSB Director-General.

John Ruku-Rwabyoma a member of parliament agreed with Ndayisaba, saying that having inclusively accessible accommodation should be a culture to ease access for people with disabilities.

"We have to make it a culture. Buildings should be ready to accommodate people with disabilities.  We think that it costs a lot, but it doesn’t,” he said, adding that the type of lifts installed in storeyed buildings also matters. For people with vision impairment, lifts with a working sound system are ideal.

According to estimates from the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), Rwanda needs 150,000 new housing units annually to cater for its [projected] 22 million population by 2050.