Short-medium term priorities (2020 – 2030)

In the next decade, Rwanda will urbanise rapidly and the short-term priority is to ensure this trend is powered by citizen- and business-oriented cities resilient to the threats of climate change. Delivering on Kigali’s green development plan while supporting urban planning and channelling investment to the six secondary cities is the priority. The actions outlined below are complementary to the substantial investment in housing, transport, high-skill jobs and integrated municipal services described in PoA 2.1. 

Long term ambitions (2030 – 2050) 

The ambition in the long term is to consolidate successful pilot projects on green urban areas, urban horticulture, multifunctional spaces, and resilient infrastructure into wider implementation plans. Lessons learnt from the Green City Kigali project will be capitalized, replicating the project in other districts and cities. 

Financing and unlocking implementation 

Flagship projects currently benefiting from public and private funding will catalyse international funds for their scaling up and will hence become self-sustaining. Setting up enabling guidelines and regulations, and ensuring their compliance, will allow for the productive implementation of plans in the market. Promoting community participation and knowledge sharing on the sustainable growth of neighbourhoods and cities will make strategies more powerful and project implementation more effective.

Short-medium term priorities (2020 – 2030) 

Ensuring that the growing urban population has access to affordable housing will require supporting measures to lower the costs of building affordable houses. Then public-private-partnerships will need to be structured to deliver quality buildings, accessible to lower-income households. Master plans for Kigali and secondary cities will be updated and delivered to ensure harmonised, integrated implementation of housing investments.

Long term ambitions (2030 – 2050) 

In the long term, the ambition is to integrate green and affordable housing, efficient and renewable energy, reliable, environmentally friendly public transport, and smart waste and water management in a holistic way. This will require data-driven management and planning for utilities, reliable infrastructure and services, and localized and shared innovation. This will be achieved by upscaling projects like the Green City Kigali pilot to secondary cities. Increased mobility will support increasing EV infrastructure, extended BRT and cable car systems to secondary cities, and the establishment of a Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system in Kigali

Financing and unlocking implementation 

Key public sector regulations, policies, and finance is expected to mobilise substantial private sector investment and partnerships. Enabling policies, skill development, and hard infrastructure investments will allow for gradual phasing out of major subsidies in the long term, especially in the housing and public transport sector. In the short term, import tax breaks and regulations could encourage adoption of new technologies in construction, while time-limited subsidies may be needed to ensure quality green housing is affordable for all.