Latest news with #YusufMurangwa
TimesLIVE
a day ago
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Rwanda plans 21% increase in spending next fiscal year
Rwanda plans overall spending of 7-trillion Rwandan francs (R87.73bn) next fiscal year, 21% more than this year, finance minister Yusuf Murangwa said on Thursday. The increased spending will support the construction of a new international airport and government priorities like boosting agricultural productivity, expanding electricity access and upgrading education and health care, the minister said in a budget speech. The budget introduces tax changes to boost revenue, including through excise duties on cigarettes, beer and airtime, a new tourism tax and by reinstating value-added tax on some items like fuel. Murangwa said the plan was for 58% of the budget to be financed from domestic sources, mainly tax revenue, 8% from grants and roughly 31% from external loans. He said the government was working to stabilise debt and make the economy more resilient to shocks. Domestic revenues are projected at 4.1-trillion Rwandan francs (R51.50bn) in the fiscal year starting in July. The East African country's economy is forecast to grow 7.1% in 2025 and 7.5% in 2026. The new international airport in Bugesera, about 40km from the capital Kigali, is expected to be ready by 2028 and cost about $2bn (R35.9bn)
Zawya
a day ago
- Business
- Zawya
Budget: Rwanda allocates $499mln to Bugesera airport
Rwanda's Cabinet has passed additional funds for the development of Bugesera International Airport on the outskirts of Kigali, signalling intent to pursue project partly funded by Qatar. The ministers approved an investment kitty of Rwf699 billion ($499 million) in the 2025/26 budget to go to the project, which is expected to gobble up some $2 billion by completion, whose deadline was extended to 2028 from 2026, due to delays in delivery of construction materials. Rwanda's Minister for Finance and Economic Planning Yusuf Murangwa, while reading the budget to parliament on Thursday, noted that the government would have to expand the budget to help finance big-ticket infrastructural projects. These include the ongoing Bugesera International airport and the expansion of routes for national carrier RwandAir. The 2025/26 budget, as a result, has increased by Rwf1.216 trillion ($853.6 million) to a Rwf7.032 trillion ($4.8 billion), from Rwf5.816 trillion ($4 billion). This meant that Rwanda's budget has risen by 21 percent to accommodate these projects. The minister had earlier highlighted a significant budget increase for the airport project, and moved on to secure a $200 million concessional loan from China's Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) to accelerate the project's completion. The first phase of the airport, located 25km outside Kigali, is designed for seven million passengers annually and is expected to be completed by 2028. The second phase is expected to be completed by 2032 and double its capacity to 14 million passengers a year. In 2019, Qatar Airways agreed to take a 60 percent stake in the airport. The initial cost was estimated at $1.3 billion, but this figure has since ballooned to $2 billion to be jointly raised by the two shareholders. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recently warned that the cost of Bugesera will significantly intensify Rwanda's debt service pressures and raise the country's public debt to 86.3 percent of GDP by 2026.'Despite critical reform to enhance domestic revenue mobilisation, the cost of the planned Bugesera airport construction will significantly intensify debt service pressures and raise public debt to 86.3 percent of GDP in 2026. Risks of overruns on large infrastructure projects need to be vigilantly monitored,' IMF said in a statement. The decision to allocate about $500 million from the national budget couldn't have been informed by the IMF warning and advisory. Rwanda's direct financial contribution to the project remains unclear, but, going by the $2 billion investment kitty needed, with 40 percent stake, Kigali would have to raise close to $1 billion, looking at other airport support infrastructure it will have to put in place. The airport will boast a 130,000-square-metre main terminal building capable of accommodating such a number of passengers. The new airport will also see a dedicated cargo terminal, capable of accommodating 150,000 tonnes of cargo a year. The construction works are currently in high gear, with authorities in charge saying horizontal works are near complete, and have moved to the vertical. The goal is to make Kigali an alternative regional hub, to Addis Ababa, given the geographical position of Rwanda right in the heart of Africa, which gives easy access to all points of the continent. Qatar Airways CEO Badr Mohammed Al Meer recently said the project is an important part of their model to cover Africa with a big network across countries, which will fit into another similar partnership in Southern Africa. Tied to Qatar's 60 percent stake in Bugesera is a deal to own 49 percent stake in Rwanda's national carrier. Read: Rwanda now gets Qatar on board for Bugesera AirportAlthough this deal is yet to be concluded five years after it was announced, reports indicate that it is still in the works. With the initial stages of constructing a permanent F1 Grand Prix circuit around the airport also underway -after Rwanda made a formal bid to host the coveted motor sport event -- completing the airport is now more urgent than never. Reports indicate that the F1 track is designed by former F1 driver Alexander Wurz, aiming to leverage Rwanda's unique hilly terrain, offering a fast and flowing layout through forests and around a picturesque lake. The airport and F1 track projects will complement each other, and align with Rwanda's broader vision to promote tourism and aviation as key cornerstones to building a service economy. © Copyright 2022 Nation Media Group. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Zawya
a day ago
- Business
- Zawya
EAC finance ministers present 2025/26 national budgets
East African finance ministers are presenting their spending plans for the 2025/26 fiscal year against amid tough economic environments and global and regional geopolitical tensions. Here are the highlights of the budgets. Kenya budgetKenya's Cabinet Secretary for Treasury, John Mbadi, will unveil a Ksh4.29 trillion ($33.03 billion) budget for the financial year 2025/2026, with a focus on revenue-raising measures. The government estimates that it will raise Ksh3.328 trillion ($25.63 billion) as ordinary revenue and appropriation-in-aid, while Ksh916.5 billion ($7.06 billion) will come from domestic and external borrowing. Parliament on Wednesday reorganised the Treasury's budget, with the military emerging as the biggest winner, getting an additional Ksh13 billion ($100.1 million) allocation, while public financial management, education and sports suffered the steepest cuts. The Budget and Appropriations Committee, which oversees and reviews the budget, added Ksh33.01 billion ($254.18 million) to the estimates that Treasury had submitted to Parliament ahead of the formal budget reading on Thursday. Follow live proceedings here:Rwanda budgetRwanda's Finance minister, Yusuf Murangwa, will present a budget of Rwf7 trillion ($4.9 billion) for the 2025/26 financial year, which starts in July. Kigali expects to spend an additional Rwf1.2 trillion ($840 million) — a 21 percent increase — compared to Rwf5.8 trillion ($4.06 billion) for the current financial year. Key priority areas include the construction of a new airport in Bugesera, as well as agriculture, education, healthcare, housing, and improving electricity connectivity. The government expects to raise Rwf4.1 trillion ($2.87 billion) in domestic revenues, accounting for 58 percent of the budget. Uganda budgetUganda finance minister Matia Kasaija is reading the country's budget with a focus on oil and gas activities and infrastructure development with hopes of increasing the economy's gross domestic product (GDP) by Ush27.3 trillion ($7.55 billion) during the period. The Treasury expects to spend Ush72.3 trillion ($20 billion) in the 2025/26 fiscal year on government programmes which is relatively unchanged compared with Ush72.1 trillion ($19.94 billion) in the current (2024/25) fiscal year. The spending targets among others investment in oil and gas activities and infrastructure projects such as maintenance of roads and bridges, rehabilitation of the meter gauge railway and construction of the standard gauge railway as well as water transport. This is projected to lift the country's total annual output to Ush 250 trillion ($69.16 billion) in the 2025/26 fiscal year from Ush 222.7 trillion ($63 billion) in 2024/25 fiscal year, according to the country's National Budget framework paper for the 2025-2026-2029/2030 fiscal years. Uganda's economy has fully recovered from the previous global, regional and domestic shocks and is on the right growth path. The economy grew by 6.1 percent in the 2023/24 fiscal year from 5.3 percent in the 2022/23 fiscal year and is projected to grow by 6.4 percent in the 2024/2025 fiscal year. Reporting by Hellen Githaiga and Patrick Alushula © Copyright 2022 Nation Media Group. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Reuters
2 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Rwanda sees economy growing 7.1% in 2025 and 7.5% in 2026
KIGALI, June 12 (Reuters) - Rwanda's economy is forecast to grow 7.1% in 2025, Finance Minister Yusuf Murangwa said on Thursday. The minister added in a budget speech that growth was expected to rise to 7.5% in 2026.
See - Sada Elbalad
23-04-2025
- Business
- See - Sada Elbalad
Finance Min.: Current Economic Situation Requires Accelerating Pace of African Integration
Taarek Refaat Ahmed Kouchouk, Minister of Finance said that Egypt looks forward to promoting mutual investments between the Egyptian and Rwandan private sectors in various economic and development fields, in a way that meets the aspirations of both countries, achieves common interests, and enhances efforts to achieve sustainable development. He added, "We are keen to exchange expertise in building balanced financial policies that stimulate economic activity and ensure financial stability and discipline." The Minister continued—in his meeting with Yusuf Murangwa, Rwandan Minister of Finance and Economic Planning—that the current economic situation requires accelerating the pace of African integration to achieve comprehensive and sustainable development, which will help stimulate economic growth, increase trade volume, and create new investment opportunities. He pointed out that developments in global trade create a competitive African business environment for exports and attract foreign investment. read more CBE: Deposits in Local Currency Hit EGP 5.25 Trillion Morocco Plans to Spend $1 Billion to Mitigate Drought Effect Gov't Approves Final Version of State Ownership Policy Document Egypt's Economy Expected to Grow 5% by the end of 2022/23- Minister Qatar Agrees to Supply Germany with LNG for 15 Years Business Oil Prices Descend amid Anticipation of Additional US Strategic Petroleum Reserves Business Suez Canal Records $704 Million, Historically Highest Monthly Revenue Business Egypt's Stock Exchange Earns EGP 4.9 Billion on Tuesday Business Wheat delivery season commences on April 15 News Egypt confirms denial of airspace access to US B-52 bombers News Ayat Khaddoura's Final Video Captures Bombardment of Beit Lahia Lifestyle Pistachio and Raspberry Cheesecake Domes Recipe News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content Arts & Culture Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's $4.7M LA Home Burglarized Videos & Features Bouchra Dahlab Crowned Miss Arab World 2025 .. Reem Ganzoury Wins Miss Arab Africa Title (VIDEO) Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Arts & Culture New Archaeological Discovery from 26th Dynasty Uncovered in Karnak Temple
