The long awaited new Kigali City Master Plan is soon to be launched. This was revealed by Bruno Rangira, the Director of Communication in Kigali City Council (KCC).

During an interview, Rangira said the new plan was designed by experts and addresses issues like the capital’s increasing population, a new drive to make the city a major commercial and service centre in the East African community, as well as making the city environmentally friendly.

The plan also caters for the provision of social amenities through out Kigali City.

"We presented the Master Plan to the Ministry of Infrastructure to table it for cabinet approval. Initially it was a project by Kigali City Council but now it’s a national issue," said Rangira.

He added that the plan caters for Kigali’s expansion which has led to shortage of land where in some places the cost of plots has risen up to Frw 7 million.

The Minister of Infrastructure Linda Bihire said: "we have discussed the Master Plan in cabinet; I think it will be passed by the next cabinet meeting and immediately it will be launched by the President."

The minister did not however say when the next cabinet meeting would be sitting.

"Land shortage is an issue not limited to Kigali alone. 70 percent of Kigali is rural, the new plan caters for Kigali’s expansion 50 years from now," said Rangira.

The plan which aims at providing investment opportunities with an organised and a well-planned city comes after the government adopted a new land bill.

Currently city authorities face the challenge of developing detailed plans to reduce the site of slums in various areas in the city.

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