Business

RwandAir (WB, Kigali) plans to homogenise its current diversified fleet as well as phase out its Bombardier Aerospace regional jets and possibly De Havilland Aircraft of Canada turboprops, says Chief Executive Officer Yvonne Manzi Makolo. The airline operates two CRJ900ERs and two DHC-8-Q400s. “We have a very diversified fleet but…

The Rwanda-Uganda border A Ugandan national Valence Kibyeyi (45) is awaiting trial in Rwanda in a case that has been running since his arrest on September 11, 2020 in Kigali. At the time, Kibyeyi was intercepted in the shopping district of Kigali together with Rwandans Manirakiza Bernardin, a transporter, and…

Dr. Ousmane Badiane, AKADEMIYA2063’s Executive Chairperson AKADEMIYA2063 and the Pan-African Farmers’ Organization (PAFO) have launched a new project that will use digital platforms and tools to enhance resilience and strengthen policy innovation. The Digitally Enabled Resilience and Nutrition Policy Innovations (DERPIn) project launched in Kigali on February 22, 2023, will…

Masai Ujiri, Founder of Giants of Africa and President of the NBA’s Toronto Raptors On the occasion of its 20th anniversary, Giants of Africa, a not-for-profit dedicated to enriching the lives of African youth through sports, and its co-founder Masai Ujiri, Vice-Chairman and President of the Toronto Raptors, has announced…

PPIAF: Ushering in a new five-year strategy for infrastructure development When I began my career as a water engineer, the maths was simple: soils and structures behave in certain predictable ways. Everything could, generally, be defined by equations and standards. “You dig ditches, right?” my friends would say. But throughout my…

Countries of the EAC Kenya’s plan to control East Africa’s logistics corridor has been put to a fresh test after Tanzania moved to extend its standard gauge railway (SGR) to neighbouring landlocked countries, months after Kenya’s line hit a dead end in Naivasha, reigniting the rivalry between the two biggest…

Research from academics at universities in Ghana and Rwanda released in June 2021 highlighted the non-effect of used car import bans (and other restrictions) in some African countries. They are having no effect on increasing new car sales. More work needs to be done, say the researchers, to stop lethal imports and…

Treatment of malaria is scheduled to get a new boost with a therapy that seeks to clear the infection as well as blocking transmission of parasites that cause malaria. Novartis and Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) have announced a shift to phase3 study for novel non-artemisinin combinations to treat uncomplicated…

One of the region’s fastest growing economies, Rwanda, has been a TDB member state since the establishment of the Bank almost four decades ago. Since then, the Bank has been supporting various strategic projects and trade finance transactions in the country, at the service of sustainable development. To date, approximately…

SHARM EL SHEIKH, Nov 20 2022 (IPS) – After a tense impasse and many hours of negotiations, almost 200 countries struck a deal to set up a loss and damage fund to assist nations worst hit by climate change – a demand considered not-negotiable by the developing countries. Campaigners were also…

Rwandans eat more than 100 kg of potatoes per capita per year, and the hilly nation has good environments for growing the crop, yet the average yield is less than half what it could be under optimal conditions, in large part because most farmers plant low quality seed potatoes. The…

Heifer President and CEO Surita Sandosham with Rwanda’s Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources Dr Gérardine Mukeshimana during the former’s visit Heifer International’s new President and CEO, Surita Sandosham, on a working visit to Rwanda from the 1st – 5th of November 2022, engaged with key stakeholders, and reiterated Heifer…

Vivo Energy Rwanda, the exclusive distributor, and marketer of Engen-branded fuels has unveiled Vivo Energy’s latest Engen-branded fuel formulation – Engen EcoDrive- which is environmentally friendly. Engen EcoDrive fuels are now available in Engen Service Stations nationwide and have been designed to be better performing and provide added benefits that…

The Mobile Economy Sub-Saharan Africa 2022 report finds that closing the usage gap is crucial to realise the potential of mobile connectivity, while 5G activities gather momentum 25 October 2022, MWC Africa: The GSMA’s first in-person MWC Africa opened its doors today in Kigali, Rwanda with a fireside chat between…

Partnership will enable customers to pay globally with a Mastercard virtual payment solution linked to the Cellulant wallet, TinggMastercard’s technology will enable consumers to shop online with or without a bank account, through a simple and secure payment experience  Mastercard and Cellulant have partnered to allow millions of Cellulant customers…

Rwanda will this week host the 7th edition of the Global Off-grid Solar Forum and Expo (GOGSFE) co-hosted by Rwanda’s Ministry of Infrastructure in collaboration with the World Bank Group’s Lighting Global Program and the industry Global Association for Off-grid Solar Energy (GOGLA). Last week, local media were taken on…

Rwanda’s sovereign wealth fund the Agaciro Development Fund (AgDF) has invested over USD 8 million in the capital stock of the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB), becoming its latest institutional shareholder. TDB is formerly PTA bank, which is the financial arm of the regional grouping COMESA.…

Polygon, the leading Web3 blockchain network used by some of the world’s biggest companies including Meta, Stripe, Reddit etc, and Xend Finance, the leading global crypto bank, announced the Polygon bootcamp, an eight-week intensive mentorship program and hackathon in Africa. The Polygon Bootcamp and Hackathon will be the company’s first…

Norah Kipwola, a Senior Energy Specialist at World Bank Rwanda Rwanda will next month host the 7th edition of the Global Off-Grid Solar Forum and Expo (GOGSFE), expected to convene in Kigali, Rwanda from 18th to 20th October 2022, and will attract over 800 delegates from 50 countries. The Forum…

Boeing 737-800 named “Muhabura” among Rwandair fleet Boeing [NYSE: BA] estimates that intra-regional and domestic networks across the African continent will grow with a robust 6,1% compound annual growth rate, driving twenty-year demand for 1,010 new airplanes by 2040 valued at $176 billion. With Europe remaining the most prominent origin/destination…

RICTA CEO Grace M. Ingabire Rwanda Internet Community and Technology Alliance (RICTA) has called upon entities and organization in both government and private sector to join the Rwanda Internet eXchange Point (RINEX) as a way of ending unreliable internet connectivity and services disruption for local consumers. The call was made…

Laurene Powell, a billionaire and wife of the late Apple founder Steve Jobs, was there, naming her gorilla as ‘Muganga Mwiza’ — Good Doctor — in honour of the late Dr. Paul Farmer, of Partners in Health, who passed on earlier this year. On a late night in early October…

The session today at the EACJ Court declares that the Government of Rwanda’s actions of taking over the Union Trade Center mall and subsequently selling it off are illegal and contravene the provisions of the EAC Treaty. The Court in its judgment declared that the award of the Trial Court…

At least seven African countries are at various stages – commissioning, shopping for vendors and mapping appropriate sites – in the roll-out of nuclear power plants, as a majority eye 2030 as a start-date for generating electricity from nuclear energy. Egypt is currently the only country to have begun construction,…

Burundi – A group of scientists involved in finding solutions to minimize the impact of a devastating banana virus in Burundi have developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool for monitoring the disease. United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) research shows that the Banana Bunchy Top Disease (BBTD), caused by the Banana…

DR Congo is now member state of the East African Community Given its vast land territory, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC’s) natural resources and agricultural potential is immense. However, the country’s economic potential is handicapped by one of the most dilapidated transport systems in the developing world. Congo’s neighbors,…

Rwanda has recieved tens of thousands of AstraZeneca doses as it tops vaccinations on the African continent A newly published expert review of real-world data demonstrates that AstraZeneca’s vaccine and mRNA COVID-19 vaccines provide equally effective protection against hospitalisation and death following two doses. The review, published by Expert Review…

Inside the business class of RwandAir which is battling other Regional carriers for supremacy The plan by the East African Community (EAC) members states to harmonize air travel within the region has received another major setback – a move likely to bring renewed fights within the bloc. Uganda has gone…

President Paul Kagame addressing CHOGM 2022 at the Kigali International Conference Center British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announce a raft of new trade and investment initiatives to create jobs, growth and shared prosperity across the Commonwealth. The Prime Minister unveiled his plans at the 26th Commonwealth Heads of Government…

Aerial view of the Gatuna border between Rwanda and Uganda It is now approaching two years since the start of trading under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) got underway, and African businesses are gaining more insight about it’s potential benefits and challenges. As the world’s largest free trade…