Rwanda Development Board
REPORTING DIRECTLY TO the President and key ministers, the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) brings together key stakeholders in order to make the country an attractive place to do business.
The organisation is modelled on best practice examples from Singapore and Costa Rica, and we asked Belise Kariza, Chief Tourism Officer, about what Rwanda has to offer the business and leisure traveller.
Africa Outlook (AfO): How has the Rwanda Development Board developed and progressed in terms of its key objectives and the messages it tries to get across?
Belise Kariza (BK): RDB’s mission is to increase investments, increase exports and create more jobs in Rwanda. This is done through strengthening the private sector, to make it the principal player in the country’s economy. RDB has always been guiding investors to help with the ease of doing business.
Today, Rwanda is the second easiest place to do business in Africa and 29th globally according to the World Bank 2019 Doing Business Index. Registered investments in the country have grown from $800 million a little over a decade ago to $2.006 billion last year alone.
AfO: How would you say Rwanda has developed in recent years as a business travel hub and what are the key reasons behind its growing appeal?
BK: Rwanda is carving out its niche as a regional and international conference hub, thanks to its worldclass Kigali Convention Centre, improved conference and hotel facilities, the new open visa regime with visa upon arrival for all world citizens, an excellent and expanding transport network and diverse entertainment options.
Last year, Rwanda and its capital city, Kigali, were ranked the third most popular destinations in Africa for accommodating international meetings and events by ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association). ICCA represents the world’s leading suppliers in handling, transporting and accommodating international meetings and events.
The rankings are based on the number of association meetings taking place regularly, rotating between at least three different countries and with at least 50 participants.
These rankings are proof that our MICE (Meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) strategy is creating value. Rwanda recorded an estimated 35,000 delegates in 2018, up from 28,308 in 2017. Tourism is the country’s largest foreign exchange earner and MICE is playing an important role in its growth, bringing in 15 percent of all tourism revenue. MICE tourism contributed $52 million in 2017 and we aim to increase it to $74 million this year.
AfO: Why, in your opinion, should someone visit Rwanda?
BK: Rwanda is a country with a diverse culture and rich heritage. Mountain gorilla trekking, birdwatching, classic game drives, nature walks, cultural experiences, hiking, and lakeside relaxation are just some of the ways to spend your vacation in Rwanda.
The country also offers magnificent hiking and trekking through dense rainforests to the summits of volcanic peaks, and even high above the tree canopy. In Rwanda you are always near amazing wildlife both large and small, and while other countries can have the same attractions that Rwanda has, safety, cleanliness and greenness make Rwanda more competitive on the market.
AfO: What trends are transforming the tourism industry in Rwanda at present? How are you responding to these trends?
BK: Since 2007, tourism revenues have been Rwanda’s number one foreign exchange earner, growing at an average rate of 25 percent annually.
The sector has also attracted investments with major high-end international hotel brands such as Marriot, Radisson Blu, Park Inn by Radisson, One & Only, Singita and Wilderness Africa’s Bisate Lodge setting up in Rwanda.
The goal of tourism and conservation in Rwanda is not only to increase visitor and revenue numbers, but to ensure that the benefits are both sustainable and shared by all our people.
Through a sustainable tourism strategy, we want to conserve the rich biodiversity of the protected areas in collaboration with all stakeholders for the benefit of all Rwandan People. In the end, the country aims to double its tourism revenues from $438 million that was earned in 2018 to $800 million by 2024.
AfO: How do you see Rwanda developing as a business travel hub over the next year to two years?
BK: Embarking on a journey to promote MICE has been fruitful and yielded different lessons. One of the lessons learnt is that it is important to work closely with stakeholders and involve all players in the private sector – this is key to developing the MICE sector.
Furthermore, MICE continues to create positive impacts on
other sectors of the economy like agriculture, tourism and infrastructure. We are optimistic that MICE will continue to be one of the pillars to grow the economy.
Despite the great journey Rwanda has taken as far as developing the MICE sector, especially in high end conference venues like Kigali Convention Centre, Intare Conference Arena and others, there is also need to grow the hospitality sector both in terms of infrastructure and service.
AfO: Are there any plans or projects in the pipeline that you wish to highlight?
BK: We want to continue positioning Rwanda as the most preferred destination for MICE by participating on different platforms where the country’s flag can be raised, and hence attract interest to the country. By ensuring that the events and meetings taking place in the country are efficiently planned and implemented, we can make sure every delegate leaves with a memorable experience and become our ambassadors.
We will continue to work closely with the private sector to involve them in activities like trade fairs to showcase their potential to host events in Rwanda. We will also work with local government and private institutions as well as our embassies abroad to identify meetings, events and exhibitions to attract to the country.
Further, we will organise visits of different destination associations or meetings associations to come and explore the facilities and incentives in the country – we believe this is going to be one of the tools to raise awareness and confidence for Rwanda to be a preferred MICE destination.
AfO: Are you optimistic about the future of the tourism industry in Rwanda?
BK: Yes, we are definitely optimistic. Thanks to our sustainable tourism strategy we are currently seeing the rapid growth of RwandAir and other international airlines connecting tourists to Rwanda every year. Also, our straightforward immigration procedures are opening up Rwanda to the rest of the world.
“Mountain gorilla trekking, birdwatching, classic game drives, nature walks, cultural experiences, hiking, and lakeside relaxation are just some of the ways to spend your vacation in Rwanda”