Iterambere Fund to be launched this year – RNIT

A new fund to promote financial inclusion targeting mainly people with little means will be launched soon. According to Rwanda National Investment Trust Limited (RNIT) officials, the ‘Iterambere Fund’ will be inaugurated by the end of this year. RNIT is an independent asset management company established by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) with the aim of promoting the assets (fund) management industry. A MINECOFIN statement says the establishment of the RNIT is in line with the Government plans to achieve fast and sustainable development of capital markets and other related financial services in the country. According to Dieudonné Ngirimana, the fund accounting and administration manager at RNIT, the minimum amount that can be invested in the fund is Rwf2,000. Ngirimana, in an interview with this newspaper on Wednesday, revealed that investors will be able to get their savings within four days from the date they request for it, along with any interest that the money has accrued. The longer the money remains in the fund, the more the interest the shareholder will get, he added. Ngirimana noted that the fund would reduce external shocks on Rwanda’s economy by strengthening the country’s financial system. “An external shock is a micro-environment issue which we cannot control. For instance, if a country has been providing aid to Rwanda, and the country undergoes a (financial) shock internally, the aid it has been providing will stop. Once they stop, that shock will hit us as well because the money we have been using is from abroad. “Foreign investments are helpful, but there should be internal resources good enough such that in case there are no external resources available, we can maintain our development,” he noted. Ngirimana reiterated that development could not be achieved if there were no investments within the country. “To tackle this external shock problem, we should have domestic mobilisation, where money should not be kept in pots,” he said. Ngirimana said the fund would mitigate risk to investors through an investment diversification system. “One should not put all their eggs in one basket by investing in one product. Once one invests in various products such as equities, treasury bonds and bills and deposits, there is a likelihood that the risk gets mitigated,” he said. Such a fund has been successfully implemented in Tanzania, the United States and in India. The funds collected will be kept in custodian banks, which so far include Bank of Kigali, the Kenya Commercial Bank, as well as the National Bank of Rwanda. The public has welcomed the establishment of the fund saying it will help them save and make profits. “I make Rwf3,000 per day on average. Instead of having one’s savings deducted as is the case in many commercial banks, this fund will help us earn money. This fund will help us establish various lucrative projects,” said François Bahigirora, a motorcyclist and resident of Huye District. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Iterambere Fund to be launched this year – RNIT