Govt, Arab bank sign $10m road construction deal

Government yesterday received a concessional loan of $10 million (approx. Rwf6.7 billion) from the Arab Bank for Economic Development (Badea) to finance the rehabilitation of Huye-Kitabi road in Southern Province.

The construction of the 53- kilometre road will be supervised by the Ministry of Infrastructure and it’s expected to be completed by 2017.

The project which will cost over $35 milion, will also obtain further support from the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) a Saudi government agency that extends bilateral aid to developing countries, predominantly through grants and soft loans.

Other funds will come from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting countries (OPEC) fund for international development. The construction works are expected to commence in six months, according to officials.

Yesterday’s agreement was signed by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Secretary to the Treasury, Pichette Kampeta Sayinzonga, and Abdelaziz Khelef, the Director General of Badea.

Addressing the media after the signing, Khelef said the infrastructure project would facilitate trade between Rwanda and regional countries like Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“Your priority is our priority; our target is to contribute towards the socio-economic development of Rwanda as well as to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and this road will ease transportation of goods within the region,” he said.

The bank’s cooperation with Rwanda dates back to 1975 and it has since injected over $8m in different infrastructure projects in the country.

Kampeta commended the bank’s commitment to supporting the country’s economic development, adding that the agreement was a symbol of the bilateral ties between the two.


Increase in trade 

“The road will help us in exporting goods especially tea and it will be key towards promotion of tourism across borders,” said Kampeta.

Statistics released in August this year indicate that Rwanda’s informal cross-border trade increased by 15.6 per cent to $46.8m (Rwf26.2b) during the first half of the year up from $40.5m (Rwf22.6b) over the same period last year.

Notably, formal trade with the East African Community improved through a reported narrowed deficit of $190m from $208m, mainly due to the declining import ratio against increasing exports.

Badea is a financial institution owned by 18 Arab countries members of the League of Arab States (LAS).

Govt, Arab bank sign $10m road construction deal