GEORGE KATUREEBE Director General of CEPEX

Rwanda remains highly dependent on foreign assistance, but the focus has shifted from humanitarian aid to grants and loans which promote long-term economic development.

In order to achieve its Vision 2020 goals of reducing poverty and becoming a middle-income country, Rwanda must build an economy capable of achieving a sustainable rate of economic growth of at least 8 percent.
Projects funded by Rwanda’s development partners need to be delivered quickly and efficiently to make full and effective use of the money available.

This is the job of the Central Public Investments and External Finance Bureau (CEPEX), the agency within the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning with the task of coordinating and overseeing development projects and mobilizing external resources.

“In a country as poor as Rwanda, which has so few resources, our development partners are our biggest source of financing,” says the bureau’s Director General, George Katureebe.

“There is a lot to be done. We need to invest in institutions, infrastructure, and human resources to reduce the cost of doing business. We must make sure that the quality of the projects and the level of preparation is extremely high so that the implementation phase is easy.”

He stresses that the government has clearly formulated objectives in terms of economic development. “The government cannot just spend money. We have come up with a precise, strategic plan, Vision 2020, and to achieve our objectives requires serious investment planning.”

CEPEX is headed by the Public Investments Council, which is made up of government ministers in key areas such as economic planning, commerce, education and health. The agency maintains a database of external donors to help it mobilize resources quickly and effectively.

Recent projects have included a $20 million initiative for financing primary schools carried out in a partnership with the African Development Bank.

Mr. Katureebe says both public and private investment has brought rapid changes to Rwanda over the past decade, and that donors and investors have confidence in the country. “That is one of the measurable indicators of an environment that is conducive to development.”