The Rwanda Investment Climate Project (RICP) yesterday formally handed over its output from the implementing units to the respective institutions after three years.

During its tenure RICP aimed at putting up institutional framework by establishing a commercial court system, improving land title issuance and land registration and supporting the creation of a new commercial registration service agency.

The project started in 2007 but the implementation kicked off in 2008 and it has significantly contributed to the improvement of the business climate in Rwanda and the country’s achievements on the World Bank doing business ranking.

Speaking at the event, Francois Kanimba, Trade and Industry Minister, said that  RICP improved doing business in the Supreme and Commercial courts, Rwanda Development Board, office of the Registrar General and Land Registration centre.

"The project had primary objectives of improving the business environment with focus on the critical areas of business and land registration and commercial justice, these areas directly address three indicators of the World Bank Doing Business Report,” he added.

"Those areas are most critical in the development of the country and boost the growth of the private sector”.

Kanimba pointed out that the government is committed to enhance the investment climate conditions to promote business growth and reduce poverty so as to become a middle income country by 2020.

"The project has achieved tremendous results; Rwanda became the top global reformer in the 2011 Doing Business Report due to the impact of the projects implemented by RICP ,” the minister asserted.

"We shall continue to deepen the reform agenda building on the momentum of RICP achievements; the project provided timely and critical support by allowing the successful running of the business in our country”.

He said that the reforms would be meaningless if they are not converted into investment success stories.

Odette Uwamariya , Coordinator of RICP said that the project has yielded good results after three years of activities, pointing out that the business registration now takes one to three days at RDB.

"The project has reduced the cost and the risk of doing business in our country in some of the respective institutions,” she stated.

Sam Rugege, Deputy Chief Justice, hailed the project for providing capacity building to the Supreme and Commercial courts.

"The project has been of great importance in capacity building and modernizing and digitizing our courts, providing them with necessary equipment, but most particularly in training our judges to render commercial justice of high standard,” he said.

RICP was initiated by the government in partnership with Investment Climate Facility for Africa (ICF) to support the country’s critical development programmes in various institutions.

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