Rwanda Cricket Association (RCA) has signed a 10-year renewable lease with Integrated Polytechnic Regional Centre (IPRC) to build a new cricket ground that will host international matches.

RCA boss Charles Haba confirmed the development on Wednesday. He said the construction of the new ground on the 1.5 hectares of land will begin officially next week.

"Kicukiro has been the home of cricket in Rwanda since its inception in 1999. We are so thankful to IPRC and the government of Rwanda for their support in the development of the sport,” Haba said.

"The RCA, cricket fraternity and the corporate sponsorship will work together to meet the budget for the new cricket ground which is estimated to cost Rwf40 millions,” added Haba.

In ten years, Haba believes the Cricket body will invest in this ground to be able to acquire funds needed for other cricket development initiatives in the country.

The construction work for the new cricket ground will take ten months. Since the inception of RCA, plenty of milestones have been reached in spite of major infrastructural challenges. 

Cricket was first introduced to Rwanda after the 1994 genocide. 

In 1999, a small number of Rwandans founded the Rwanda Cricket Association (RCA), and in 2003, Rwanda became an Affiliate Member of the International Cricket Council.

Cricket is now played competitively at international, club and school levels in Rwanda. A club league, three club tournaments, a schools competition and a university competition make up the eleven month formal cricketing calendar. 

Thousands of young Rwandans, both male and female, play cricket in orphanages, primary and secondary schools and universities. The Rwandan boys and girls teams (from U13 - U19) compete well within the East and Central African region.

But more than a decade after the RCA leased its first ground in Kicukiro and despite playing numbers exceeding 4,500, there is still only one cricket pitch in Rwanda. 

The ground will act as a springboard for arguably the fastest growing sport in Rwanda.