Roundtable meeting at the Embassy of The Republic of Rwanda in Stockholm, May 27th, 2024 from 01.00 pm – 04.00 pm.

 

Business opportunities in Rwanda – ICT, Digitalisation & Entrepreneurship

 

Nordic-African Consultancy and H.E. Ambassador Ms. Diana Gashumba to the Embassy of The Republic of Rwanda in Stockholm, Sweden, welcome Nordic companies interested in business / investment opportunities in Rwanda to our Nordic-Rwandan Roundtable on May 27, 2024.

Business & Investment Opportunities

 

A fast-growing sub-Saharan economy and significant regional player in Eastern Africa, there are a host of business opportunities for Nordic companies to explore in Rwanda. Though trade and key economic sectors such as Tourism & Hospitality have been affected by COVID-19 and global geopolitics, the economy has benefited from important public investments, and exports have been boosted through a joint focus on technology, Innovation and trade in Services. By 2022, Rwandan companies’ participation in international trade exceeded that of regional peers.
Increasing e-commerce has simultaneously led to market development and boosted the ability of particularly SMEs to export internationally. As such, ICT, digitalisation & digital infrastructure, innovation, and entrepreneurships are important forces, creating new business or investment opportunities in Rwanda and underpinning the potential for Nordic-Rwandan trade. 
Focusing on business and investment opportunities related to Rwanda’s transformation towards a knowledge-based economy and global business hub, key sectors include:
  • ICT 
  • Education
  • Health services
  • Renewable energy
  • Infrastructure
  • Tourism & Hospitality
These economic sectors hold great potential for fostering entrepreneurship, undergoing innovative development and advancing through integration into a digital economy. These sectors generally overlap with Rwanda’s priority sectors for investment, which also include mining, agro processing, manufacturing, construction and real estate development.
 

Markets & Trade

 

Rwanda offers a favourable business environment with incentives for international businesses and investors. 
  • Rwanda’s Ease of Doing Business-score has witnessed continuous improvement over the past decade and is now the second highest on the continent.
  • Perceived levels of corruption are likewise among the lowest in Africa.
  • Innovative capabilities, general cluster advancement and overall competitiveness are all at fairly high regional levels, through there is demand for skills development and capacity building to strengthen local capabilities and opportunities for bottom-up private sector development. 
  • A young and growing Rwandan population, an emerging middle class as well as high urbanisation rates drive demographic changes and new market potentials.
  • Digitalisation is advancing in line with Rwanda’s Vision 2020 and Vision 2050. Public investments in digital development have placed Rwanda among the African countries with the highest degree of digitalised government services. particularly mobile penetration rates are high, and strenghtening connectivity is a political priority.
  • Physical and digital infrastructure supporting Rwanda’s socioeconomic development is improving as well, and almost 10% of the annual public budget is invested in infrastructural development. This includes investment in energy generation capacity and electrification, based on increasing diversification of national energy sources. Likewise, this has included investments in modern facilities to poise Rwanda as a regional hub for large-scale and international events/conferences such as the Rwandan 
Rwanda’s involvement in global trade is a further indicator of business opportunities stemming from economic openness. 
  • Rwandan trade-to-GDP is at 60%
  • Intermediate and consumer goods dominate both national imports and exports, though a large amount of capital goods are imported as well.
Further, the trade potential in Rwanda is significant:
  • Rwanda is part of the East African Community (EAC) Customs Union and Common Market and will be covered by the EU-EAC Economic Partnerhship Agreement, once it is ratified by all members of the EAC.
  • Bordering 3 East African countries, Rwanda may serve as a gateway market for trade in East Africa.

Address / Venue

The Embassy of The Republic of Rwanda in Stockholm, Sweden
Sveavägen 159
113 46 Stockholm
Sweden

Agenda 

See agenda here: Roundtable Meeting at The Embassy of The Republic of Rwanda in Stockholm, Sweden (TBA).   

Sign up  

Members of AFRICA INNOVATION NETWORK participate free of charge. Non-members can participate at EURO 200 (incl. VAT). Sign up is mandatory. Please sign up to: fls@nordic-african.com.