Rwanda secures 11.6m Euro grants to build lake port

Last updated on September 11th, 2021 at 03:11 pm

The Netherlands will offer over 11.6 million euros (12.7million U.S. dollars) in grants to Rwanda in the next fiscal year to build four ports on Lake Kivu (West) as a move intended to develop trade, maritime transport and tourism around the lake, an official source revealed Saturday in Kigali.This grant represent 40 percent of the project which will be built in the four districts of Rubavu (Nyamyumba), Rusizi ( Bugiki), Karongi (at the Karongi cross-border market); and Rutsiro (Nkora region), a statement issued by the Rwanda’s ministry of Finance and Economic Planning said.
It is expected that the construction will start next month and will be completed by the end of 2020.
Reports indicate that the port maximum cargo handling capacity is 580,000 tonnes, while the minimum is 270,000 tonnes.
Estimates by Rwanda Transport Development Agency (RTDA) show that there will be three major ports with capacity of about 1.5 million passengers per year in 2020, projected to reach 2.8 million by 2036, while a smaller one in Karongi will start with a capacity of about 300,000 passengers per year by 2020 and 400,000 passengers by 2036.
The ports will boost cross-border trade as many people come from the DR Congo to buy products from major markets in Rubavu and Karongi located on Lake Kivu belt in Western Rwanda, according to the same source.