Key Projects of Rwanda

Korean technology brings 4G to Rwanda

Korea Telecom Corporation has partnered with the Rwandan Government in two joint ventures to accelerate the deployment of IT infrastructure across the country and develop online services to support the country’s transition into a knowledge-based economy. Established in January 2014, the public–private partnership Africa Olleh Services will expand the country’s ‘cloud’ service capability, enabling businesses, the government and individuals to conduct a full range of economic and social activities online. The company will also work as a systems integrator and provider of IT solutions to the broader market across the region. The arrangement follows the earlier joint venture begun in 2013, Olleh Rwanda Networks, which is setting up 4G connectivity as part of a national fibre optic infrastructure, as well as operating the combined infrastructure as a wholesale-only provider of high-speed mobile broadband, which should be available to 95 per cent of the population by 2017.

Public-Private Partnerships

Public–private partnerships were negligible in Rwanda up until the 2010s, with concessions granted to investors in key areas a more common practice. The government has, however, attested to its interest in public–private partnerships for infrastructural development and as a catalyst for private sector development, formalising public–private partnerships as a procurement option in the 2008 National Public Investment Policy (NPIP). Progress in public–private partnerships has been delayed by an unclear legal framework, communication plan and strategy. The Rwandan Government established two bodies within the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning – a Public Investment Technical Team (PITT) and a dedicated PPP unit. The Rwanda Development Board has facilitated the closing of a total of 14 public–private partnerships and concessions (January 2014).