Private sector players reiterate need for low interest rate on loans to support business growth

Members of the Private Sector are saying they now understand the importance of savings in the country's Vision 2050 drive, in addition to loan acquisitions from Financial Institutions.

The Vision 2020 has now ended and left Rwanda with achievements that seemed impossible when it was first proposed, but now the Vision 2050 has begun and far more will need to be achieved over the next 3 decades.

The goals are clear, but by no means easy: to have the average Rwandan earning up to 4 Million Frw annually by the year 2035 and not less than 12 Million Frw by 2050. 

The private sector's role in this must be prominent if it is to happen and there are no illusions about what needs to be done, challenges have been highlighted.

Claudine Mukeshimana, Executive Director of Rwanda Association of Manufacturers (RAM) said: "Getting money is hard because of high interest rates and they should be reduced. There are many ways to go about that and we must start saving so that Banks have more money. They say one of the reasons interest rates are so high is due to the fact that they too have no money. That means if we were all to save more, we would not need to borrow so much,"

Building a stronger Private Sector through better training and highly skilled workforces is also being highlighted as important by Entrepreneurs.

Josephine Mbabazi, a local manufacturer said: "There is a need to invest much more in human capital, so that we can produce highly skilled workers. Efforts are underway to train young people through projects like 'Igira ku murimo', that particularly target women and girls,"

As part of the Vision 2050, Government Investment levels are to be gradually reduced from the current 12% to 8%; giving more room for the Private Sector to step up to the challenge to fill the vacuum, which even ordinary citizens understand must be done to attain long term development.

Obed Habimana, a resident Kamonyi said: "People should stop standing around and work and if their effort levels were at 50%, they must be raised to 80. When you do that, following Government Programs, it does not matter what you choose to do, you develop,"

Clarisse Uwamahoro, another Kamonyi resident reiterated: "First and foremost, people must have peace and security, which we have. Now, that has paved the way for everything else that can be achieved. If a person invests 4 Million Frw annually in a given business, then that person should work hard and also train themselves to learn new strategies of making that money more productive as time passes. People here in Rwanda can no longer rely on others to think for us, we must do that for ourselves and our leaders will help us to implement our ideas,"

Technology, Innovation and a knowledge based economy are now seen as crucial moving forward, as well as more investment.

2018 saw investment worth $2.1 Billion and last year, it jumped to $2.4 Billion.

By Serge NTORE