The African Development Bank on Thursday, November 28, launched the Country Development Effectiveness Review (CDER), which examines Rwanda's development journey and the Bank's contribution to the country's development results.

The second edition of the CDER focuses on the decade from 2012 to 2022, following a first report on Rwanda issued in 2012 covering the period 2009–2011. The report, which lauds the country's longstanding partnership with the AfDB, states that Rwanda is the Bank’s fifth largest client in East Africa, with 113 projects approved over the years, representing an investment of $3.1 billion.

Currently, AfDB manages an active portfolio of 27 projects with a total commitment of $2.2 billion, closely aligned with the country's development priorities.

Speaking at the launch, the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Yusuf Murangwa, said that the Bank continues to be impactful to the country and its people.

"These investments are important for Rwanda's future growth, especially in reducing the cost of doing business and which have benefited key sectors such as services, agriculture, and industry," Murangwa said.

Energy

Though significant progress was made in the energy sector towards universal access to electricity, challenges remain, particularly the lack of energy diversification which is contributing to high energy costs and affordability.

Highlighting the progress made in partnership with AfDB, Murangwa said, "Between 2012 and 2022, Rwanda made significant progress in expanding access to electricity, nearly tripling its connectivity from 16.8 per cent in 2012 to 61 per cent in 2022. This growth accelerated further in 2023, with 74.4 per cent of households connected to electricity by the end of the year, a remarkable milestone towards the country's goal of universal access to electricity."

According to the CDER, AfDB's first phase of the Scaling Up Electricity Access Project (SEAP) facilitated electricity access for 30,535 households, 210 schools, 32 health centres, and 52 local administrative offices. The project also improved the overall performance of the electricity system, with national grid system losses decreasing from 23 per cent in 2012 to 19 per cent in 2020.

Education

The AfDB has also contributed to the country's efforts to invest in educational facilities.

"The AfDB supported the Regional ICT Centre of Excellence Project, leading to the establishment of Carnegie Mellon University-Africa (CMU Africa) in 2018," Murangwa said.

The Bank also supported the initial phase of East Africa’s Centers of Excellence for Skills and Tertiary Education in Biomedical Sciences Project, aiming to establish a network of excellence in biomedical science and engineering and making a contribution to address the shortage of skilled professionals in the biomedical profession.

Jacqueline Gatsinzi, a lecturer at the University of Rwanda and a graduate of the Centers of Excellence, who was trained in prosthetics and orthotics, said she is now making a difference in her community.

"I am grateful for the opportunity to further my studies at the Centers of Excellence and now, as a lecturer at UR, I am passing my knowledge and skills to the next generation of prosthetics and orthotics who will be making assistive devices for people with disabilities," Gatsinzi said.

Outlook

As Rwanda embarks on the second National Strategy for Transformation (NST2), AfDB's Country Manager, Aissa Toure, said that the Bank is ready to journey with the country.

"We are working with a government which knows what it wants for its people. So, we have NST2, which is very well outlined, and the bank has a very prominent role to play in implementing it,” Toure said, adding that AfDB is working on the costing as well as the delivery mechanisms.

In NST2, the government targets to attract more private investments and push for a private sector led growth.

Toure said that the bank will put more efforts to ensure that access to finance for the private sector is prioritised.

"Going forward, we will focus on making sure that the right financial products are available especially for small businesses which have not been able to benefit from financial support from banks because of the size of the tickets that they need." she said.

This year, AfDB is marking its diamond Jubilee, 60 years of driving sustainable economic growth in Africa.