A donor two-day conference funded by UNDP and attended by some 20 countries concluded in Geneva on 23 January 1995. In the conference, donor countries pleaded US$ 587 million dollars in aid to find the country’s recovery program in the year 1995-6. In May, donor countries like the United States, Great Britain, Spain, Belgium, Germany and Norway, among others agreed to fund the international tribunals.
Donor agencies which pleaded for funding in January met in Rwanda for two days in July to review progress on disbursement of reconstruction funds. According to a report, only 92 million of total 430 million expected had been disbursed. Donor representatives again met in November for the repatriation and resettlement of refugees and agreed that their pledges made at the Geneva conference would be reassessed soon. Some countries also made new aid pledges to help Rwanda. Rwanda received a total of 702 million bilateral and multilateral assistance of which 662.6 million was grant assistance.
In order to help the repatriation program and with rebuilding the war-torn economy, representatives from about 40-donor governments met in Geneva on 2 August 1994, in which the UN was asking for US$434 million.2 It was not clear whether the donor countries met the request. Also, the poor funding stalled the UN genocide probe projects that required a deployment of human rights monitors across Rwanda.
The Arusha Accord asked for donor supports to implement the repatriation program as well as for rebuilding war-shattered economy. Unrelated to the repatriation program, the UN appealed for aid to Rwanda to help nearly 1 million people at risk of starvation.[fn]”UN Appeals for Aid to Rwanda, Warns of Donor Fatigue,” Associated Press, April 17, 1993.[/efn_note] Further information on funding is not available.
The government’s program of rebuilding social and economic infrastructure continued in 2002. Much of the activities were supported by funding from donor agencies. In this regard, the IMF provided financial support Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) programs, which contributed rebuilding economic and social infrastructure.
Not much information available on economic activities. However, donor agencies and countries continued to help to rebuild socio-economic infrastructure of the country. In 2003, the transitional phase ended with the holding of the election for the president and the national assembly in which Kagame was elected president and his party the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) won the majority of seats in the assembly.
The government’s program of rebuilding social and economic infrastructure continued in 2001. Much of the activities were supported by funding from donor agencies. According to a report, macroeconomic performance during 2001 was strong. A growth in manufacturing, construction, transportation, and communications activities was reported.
Little information is available. Nevertheless, the economy grew at the rate of 6 per cent in 1999 compared to 8 per cent in 1998. Poverty and AIDS were hindering the Rwanda’s economic rebuilding initiatives.
Some progress was made in terms of rebuilding social and economic infrastructure. The African Development Fund financed 91 percent of the Rehabilitation of Health Infrastructure project. The economy grew gradually but a reliance on commodity exports was met by repressed prices in the world market. The agriculture sector continued to be the primary export earner. The government was also mulling over plans to exploit natural resources such as natural gas under Lake Kivu with estimated reserve of more than 50bn cu meters.
It was reported that the consolidation of government authority contributed to the economic recovery. The real GDP recovery was 13 percent, which was a rise of 76 per cent in comparison to the pre-war period. The relatively improved security situation in the countryside allowed the government to expand its revenue bases. The rebuilding of plantations and favorable international market for tea and coffee helped to generate much needed foreign reserve. In this regard, government also planned to boost trade and commerce and for this purpose export tariffs were reduced. To protect local industry, imports of locally produced goods were heavily taxed.
In April 1998, the Rwandan government announced a three-year growth plan that included fiscal, monetary and structural reforms to the Rwandan economy, including the overhaul of its tax system to increase revenue. The reforms was expected to overhaul Rwanda’s public services through retrenchment , and measures to encourage domestic private sector investment to help rebuild infrastructure.
Rwanda remained heavily indebted with more than 1 billion in foreign debt or 91% of its GDP. Nevertheless, Rwanda made efforts to restore the situation to normal by stabilizing society, rehabilitating the judicial system and rebuilding the economy. Donor countries and international development agencies were providing rebuilding support throughout the year.
Almost all civil administration infrastructures were restored throughout Rwanda, which facilitated a gradual repatriation of refugees. In terms of recovery, the Rwandan economy bounced back to the pre-genocide level as reported by the International Monetary Fund. According to the news report, some 60 to 70 per cent of enterprises in the tertiary sector, for instance, had re-opened and were thriving as of 1996. Nevertheless, to rebuild its economy, the Rwandan Government needed more than 800 million USD in the years 1996-1998.
