As Mayor of Kigali, I was delighted to learn that our city had been named as one of the winners of the 2021 Bloomberg Global Mayor’s Challenge. 

Bloomberg Philanthropies – founded by Michael Bloomberg, the former Mayor of New York City – launched the challenge to support "the most ambitious ideas developed by cities in response to the Covid-19 pandemic”. This prize – $1 million – will help us on our ambitious journey to deliver a high standard of living to every citizen of Kigali.

Across the country, Rwandans are already suffering from the effects of climate change.

Unpredictable and severe climate events, such as extreme flooding and drought, are affecting every aspect of our lives, from health to food security. We cannot accept to let the lives and livelihoods of our fellow citizens to be put at risk.

As a country, we have committed to tackling this threat head on. The environment is a key pillar of Vision 2050, our overarching national strategy to reach high-income status by 2050. Urban planning is central to this. With Rwanda’s fast-developing economy, and growing urban population, sustainable urbanisation is an absolute prerequisite, not just an option.

The City of Kigali’s project to transform waste and water management, and tackle the threats created by increasingly intense rainfall in our capital, reflects this approach.

Like most of the country, Kigali is subject to short, heavy rainfall. At their most intense, these deluges of rain can cause flooding across the city.

While most of the city is built to withstand even the rainiest of days, the increasing threat of flooding brought by climate change has increased the threat faced by the city’s most vulnerable.

For those who live in informal settlements on steep slopes, particularly heavy rain can cause serious problems. One of these problems is the spread of waste by flash floods. As well as the obvious damage this does to quality of life, it can also pose a significant health risk.

The $1 million grant awarded by Bloomberg Philanthropies will support bold action to protect 1,405 households in Busanza and Mpazi against these threats. It will help the City of Kigali to implement circular, nature-based, and tech-enabled solutions to alleviate the impacts of flooding.

Thanks to this grant, we will be able to introduce cutting-edge smart waste collection infrastructure, which harnesses technology to eliminate some of the threats posed by poor waste management. Furthermore, by harvesting the rainwater, which causes flooding, we will not only protect settlements but also serve critical water needs in these areas.

Our citizens will be deeply involved in the project. We understand that for successful urban planning, citizens must be active stakeholders. The grant will also fund training to ensure that the residents of Busanza and Mpazi will take ownership of the management and usage of these solutions and ensure their effectiveness.

This project, therefore, embodies of two of the guiding principles of Rwandan environmental policy.

First, it is nature-based. We are seeking to work with, rather than against nature – to harness the circular economy and produce positive outcomes. By creating a more efficient way of harvesting, treating, and redistributing rainwater, not only will we hedge against flooding risks, but we’ll also help to create an alternative and affordable water source, reducing the public’s reliance on commercial water treatment plants.

Secondly, it is citizen first. Rwanda’s transformation over the past 28 years has largely been possible because of the involvement of its people in every step of governance. Government – whether national, regional, or local – is directly answerable to the people.

This project is, above all else, for the benefit of those households in Busanza and Mpazi that it serves. Promoting community ownership and management is the key to its success.

Both these principles are crucial to the Kigali Master Plan 2020 – which places green initiatives such as these at the centre of our vision for a future-proof city. This project is one of many, which will transform the lives of Kigali’s citizens for the better.

As Mayor of Kigali, I am truly grateful to Bloomberg Philanthropies for this award, which is a testament to the hard work of Kigali’s citizens. I am eager to witness the transformative impact that this grant will have on our communities in the coming years. 

The writer is the Mayor of the City of Kigali.