Poverty in Rwanda

Human development in Rwanda has been greatly handicapped by the legacy of the 1994 genocide which destroyed much of the social, economic and human fabric of the country. Thanks to a stable political environment and generous development aid of the order of $50 per capita pa, Rwanda’s desperate poverty and health indicators are now moving in the right direction. This momentum has to be sustained and accelerated if the country is to catch up with the demands of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

For example, in 2006 37% of the population survived on an income insufficient to meet basic food needs, one of the highest levels of extreme poverty in the world and only 4% down on 2000, the baseline year adopted for the poverty MDG in Rwanda. It is very unlikely that the target of halving extreme poverty by 2015 can be met; the same applies to the broader measure of poverty (which includes non-food essentials) which has fallen over the same period only from 60% to 57%. These lethargic rates of poverty reduction contrast with strong headline economic growth in Rwanda implying that the rewards are not reaching those most in need – indeed the Gini coefficient measure of inequality has increased over this period from 0.47 to 0.51.

Rwandan school © Aimable Twahirwa / IRIN News

By contrast, Rwanda is almost certain to fulfil its education and gender MDGs ahead of schedule despite having suffered major setbacks in 1994, when it is estimated that 3,000 teachers died and 600 primary schools were destroyed. With over 2,000 primary schools now established and the implementation of compulsory free primary education, net enrolment is already 95%. Whilst there is gender parity in both primary and secondary schooling, there is concern that family difficulties prevent almost half of all children from completing primary education.

A clear focus on accomplishing the MDGs is articulated in Rwanda’s Economic Development Poverty Reduction Strategy (EDPRS) 2008-2012 and the boost of significant debt relief in 2005 improves the capacity to upgrade social service delivery. However, an MDG “needs assessment” for Rwanda concludes that, if the Goals are to be achieved, government spending on health and livelihoods must rise substantially and that foreign aid, already about 50% of the national budget, will have to increase by a further $10-$24 per capita pa. There is no sign that such funding levels might become available; indeed there are concerns about duplication and inefficiency of the exceptionally high number of donor projects.

Food Security in Rwanda

Herding cattle, Rwanda © Heidi Martin

Poverty reduction in Rwanda is constrained by the profiles of its population and agriculture. The density of 328 people per square kilometre is the highest in Africa, the pressure on land growing constantly through a high population growth rate of over 3% pa. Over 80% of the population is engaged in subsistence agriculture working on farms of average size less than one hectare. Yields are depressed by major soil erosion, inadequate irrigation and limited access to credit for farm inputs. A landlocked country with poor roads limits potential for cash crops and there is virtually no electricity in rural areas.

Rural settlement, Rwanda © Heidi Martin

This pattern of production inevitably leaves the country dependent to a degree on imported foodstuffs and it is no surprise that Rwanda features on the list of 22 countries named by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as “particularly vulnerable” to the 2008 crisis of rising food prices. Over 20% of young children are already underweight, a figure that has barely improved since 2000. For the longer term, the government’s strategic Vision 2020 envisages that the proportion of the population dependent on agriculture should fall to 50%, somewhat unconvincingly proposing a move towards cooperative farming alongside development of new sectors of economic activity.
Climate Change in Rwanda

In a rain-fed agrarian economy where poverty and food insecurity are rife, climate change sharpens its claws for potentially devastating impact. Any reduction in rainfall will damage farm yields whilst extreme or torrential downpours will hasten the process of soil erosion. Rwanda’s National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) published in 2007 was bound to conclude that a great proportion of the population is highly vulnerable to climate change with very limited capacity for adaptation. Priorities for action are identified as the development of an integrated water management strategy, early warning systems for weather patterns and the use of adaptable crop varieties.

Lake setting, Rwanda © Heidi Martin

The most urgent need identified in the NAPA is to put a stop to the almost universal use of firewood for cooking, as the loss of trees is exposing soils to erosion and negating government efforts at reforestation. Expansion of hydropower is difficult as river levels are already falling whilst other renewable sources such as solar are prohibitively expensive. Rwanda’s hopes for an energy revolution are pinned on the innovative exploitation of methane trapped in Lake Kivu – some estimates suggest that this source could upgrade the country’s capacity by a factor of ten.
Health and HIV/AIDS in Rwanda

Mother and child, Rwanda © Heidi Martin

An increase in spending on health to over 12% of the government budget in 2006 has brought gradual improvement. 60% of the population lives within 5 km of a health centre and maternal mortality has fallen 30% since 2000, counter to the trend in many countries of sub-Saharan Africa. However the rates of child and maternal mortality remain similar to the levels in 1990 – the year adopted as the baseline for these indicators – so that the MDG targets for 2015 look very demanding. The poor standards of sanitation in Rwanda are recognised as a factor contributing to health problems; with time running out, one estimate has put the cost of providing adequate water and sanitation by 2015 as high as $820 million.

Greatly assisted by generous donor funding, Rwanda’s fight against HIV/AIDS accounts for almost 25% of spending on health and is a potential success story. The prevalence rate has fallen from 13.9% in 2000 to 3.0% in 2007, thanks to strong prevention campaigns. Antiretroviral treatment centres are available without charge and coverage has increased rapidly to reach over 50% of those in need. A gender breakdown of HIV prevalence however is disconcerting with the rate for women (3.6%) more than 50% higher than that for men. The latest country report for 2006/07 suggests that this reflects the level of domestic violence suffered by women, together with their weak status in Rwandan culture.



Mark Naftalin worked in Rwanda monitoring the reintegration conditions for former refugees. He is currently working for the Mines Advisory Group in Angola.

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