{"id":2000132205,"date":"2026-11-13T15:02:40","date_gmt":"2026-11-13T13:02:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/?p=2000132205"},"modified":"2026-11-13T15:04:38","modified_gmt":"2026-11-13T13:04:38","slug":"rwandas-spending-on-child-focused-sectors-rises-4-2-unicef-reports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/rwandas-spending-on-child-focused-sectors-rises-4-2-unicef-reports\/","title":{"rendered":"Rwanda’s spending on child-focused sectors rises 4.2%, UNICEF reports"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The increase represents 22% of the national budget, which stands at Rwf7.8 trillion, according to the FY2026\/27 Social Sector Budget Brief launched by UNICEF Rwanda and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) on Thursday, November 12.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report examines public spending across four sectors considered critical to children’s wellbeing: education, health, social protection, and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its launch comes as the government begins preparations for the FY2027\/28 budget, with UNICEF and MINECOFIN calling for sustained investment to protect gains made in child welfare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rwanda’s overall national budget increased by 12.1% compared with the previous fiscal year, with domestic resources now financing more than two-thirds of public spending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the report warns that inflation could erode the purchasing power of allocations to social services. With inflation projected to peak at 10.5% during the fiscal year, it highlights the need to ensure that increased budget allocations translate into continued improvements in service delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRwanda has shown what steady investment in children can achieve. Fewer children are dying before their fifth birthday, more are finishing primary school, and far fewer families are living in poverty,\u201d said Lieke van de Wiel, UNICEF Representative in Rwanda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She added that protecting these investments as the next budget takes shape would help build the healthy and skilled workforce needed to achieve Vision 2050.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report points to improvements in several indicators of child welfare over recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data from the seventh Integrated Household Living Conditions Survey (EICV7) shows that poverty declined from 39.8% in 2017 to 27.4% in 2024, while extreme poverty more than halved, falling from 11.3% to 5.4%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stunting among children under five also declined from 33% in 2020 to 27% in 2025. Meanwhile, under-five mortality dropped from 45 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2019\/20 to 36 in 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In education, net enrolment in pre-primary schools more than doubled, rising from 24.2% in the 2021\/22 academic year to 50.3% in 2024\/25.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Education receives largest share<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Education received the largest allocation among the four sectors, with Rwf907.3 billion in the 2026\/27 budget. About 88% of the sector’s funding comes from domestic resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite improvements in school completion, the report identifies persistent challenges, including grade repetition, which affects one in five pupils.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also highlights disparities in secondary school attendance, with only 20% of children from the poorest households attending compared with 55% from the wealthiest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The health sector received Rwf500.2 billion, with the report highlighting progress in reducing child mortality. However, under-five mortality remains above the national target of 20 deaths per 1,000 live births by 2028\/29.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Development partners finance close to half of the health sector budget, making continued support for maternal, child and adolescent health and nutrition programmes important as external assistance evolves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social protection received Rwf157.3 billion. Domestic financing for the sector increased by two-thirds, helping offset reduced contributions from development partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, reaching the national target of covering 20% of poor and vulnerable people will require nearly doubling existing coverage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WASH recorded the strongest growth among the four sectors, with its allocation increasing by 15.8% to Rwf146.5 billion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of the additional funding went towards drinking water, while sanitation remains an area requiring further investment, particularly given the disparities between poorer and wealthier households.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Climate financing presents opportunity<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report also highlights opportunities to connect climate financing more directly to services that benefit children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rwanda has tagged Rwf761.8 billion, equivalent to about 10% of the national budget, as climate-related spending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With children accounting for nearly half of the country’s population and recognised as key stakeholders in Rwanda’s third Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0), UNICEF argues that more climate financing could support schools, healthcare services and social protection programmes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking ahead to the FY2027\/28 budget, the report recommends adjusting allocations to account for rising prices, protecting maternal and child health and nutrition programmes, strengthening domestic financing for WASH and social protection, and integrating child-focused sectors more fully into climate financing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jeanette Rwigamba, Head of the National Budget Department at MINECOFIN, said the report provides a common evidence base for government institutions and development partners as preparations for the next budget begin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInvesting in people remains at the heart of Rwanda’s development agenda. This brief, which we developed together with UNICEF, gives us a common evidence base as we prepare the FY2027\/28 budget. We look forward to working with line ministries and partners to make every franc count for children,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report was developed jointly by UNICEF Rwanda and MINECOFIN’s National Budget Department and draws on government budget documents, EICV7 and the Rwanda Demographic and Health Survey 2024\/25.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Rwanda's
The FY2026\/27 Social Sector Budget Brief was launched by UNICEF Rwanda and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) on Thursday, November 12.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rwanda increased spending on child-focused sectors by 4.2% to Rwf1.7 trillion in the 2026\/27 fiscal year, as the country continues to invest in education, healthcare, social protection and water and sanitation services.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":2000132206,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"archived_slugs":[],"footnotes":"","igh_game_id":0},"categories":[6],"tags":[151,69],"byline":[3260],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-2000132205","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-editors-choice","tag-homehighlights","byline-tumalo-noel-zakaria"],"bylines":[{"id":3260,"name":"Tumalo Noel Zakaria","slug":"tumalo-noel-zakaria","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":null,"twitter_handle":""}],"contributors":[{"id":3260,"name":"Tumalo Noel Zakaria","slug":"tumalo-noel-zakaria","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":null,"twitter_handle":""}],"featured_image":{"id":2000132206,"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/11\/Budget-Brief-Launch_1.jpg","alt":"Rwanda's spending on child-focused sectors rises 4.2%, UNICEF reports","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":770,"height":513,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/11\/Budget-Brief-Launch_1-150x150.jpg","width":150,"height":150},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/11\/Budget-Brief-Launch_1-300x200.jpg","width":300,"height":200},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/11\/Budget-Brief-Launch_1-768x512.jpg","width":768,"height":512},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/11\/Budget-Brief-Launch_1.jpg","width":770,"height":513},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/11\/Budget-Brief-Launch_1.jpg","width":770,"height":513}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000132205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000132205"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000132205\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2000132208,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000132205\/revisions\/2000132208"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000132206"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000132205"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000132205"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000132205"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=2000132205"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=2000132205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}