Rwanda’s Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources Dr. Agnes Matilda Kalibata has wooed Indian investors to invest in infrastructure, agriculture, energy, mining, IT and tourism sectors, igihe.com has learnt.
Information from New Delphi, India indicate that Minister Kalibata who is currently attending the 2nd Rwanda Investment Road show in India, told Indian investors that they were welcome to participate in the economic development of Rwanda.
“Rwanda, located at the crossroads of the commercial heartland of East and Central Africa, can provide India huge opportunities to invest in a market of over 200 million people in East and Central Africa and a combined GDP of over US $100 bn,” Kalibata has said.
Kalibata told Indian investors to come explore the opportunities in Rwanda, which has a population of 10 million and boasts an increasing middle class.
Rwanda Development Board (RDB) Chief Operating Officer Claire Akamanzi in the same investment Road show, said Rwanda is trying to attract foreign investment in infrastructure, especially roads, airports and real estate.
“The country’s farm sector, which accounts for 34 percent of the country’s GDP and sustains 78 per cent of its population, is open to foreign participation in development of the tea, coffee, horticulture and irrigation sectors, Akamanzi added.
Stressing on the largely untapped natural resources of the country, she said Rwanda plans to use them to extend power grid coverage to 67 percent of the population by 2012 through a US $ 311 million capital expenditure programme.
“We have around 50-55 billion cubic metres of methane gas deposits in the lake Kivu area, which can be harnessed to produce electricity and also have identified 333 potential sites for micro-hydro power projects,” Akamanzi noted.
“The tourism sector booming, still has significant opportunities for growth,” she said adding that there are also major investment opportunities available in the mining, information and communication and financial services space.
Minister was quick to say that Africa will experience rapid growth in the next two decades and it will be an honour to have India as a part of that experience.
Indian companies like mobile services Airtel, tea producers Jayshree and Mcleod Russel have already invested in Rwanda.
Rwanda the land of a thousand hills, has registered a GDP growth rate of 7.1 per cent since 2004 and has been dubbed the fastest reformer of business regulations globally by the World Bank.
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