Canna Reporter…..
The Rwandan government has announced that state investment in infrastructure dedicated to the cannabis industry is expected to practically triple in the 2025/2026 fiscal year, reaching around 8.2 billion Rwandan francs (around five million euros). The money will be used to build access roads, water and electricity supply networks, irrigation systems and other infrastructure considered essential to support licensed producers.
According to Cannabiz Africa, six years after legalizing cannabis cultivation exclusively for export, Rwanda is significantly strengthening public investment in the industry and repositioning itself as a future low-cost African producer for international markets. The decision comes after delays faced by the country’s first major project highlighted that, without adequate infrastructure, it will be difficult to attract investment and compete with other producers on the continent.
First project exposed the weaknesses
The change in strategy appears to be a direct result of the experience of King Kong Organics Rwanda (KKOG), the first company to obtain a license to grow, process and export medicinal cannabis in the country.
The project, valued at several million dollars, was presented as a milestone for the new Rwandan industry. However, the construction of the production facility, located in the Musanze district, has suffered successive delays due to the lack of basic support infrastructure. Access to the site, water and energy supplies and other essential works eventually required direct intervention by the State, which took over part of the investments needed to make the project viable. In May of this year, authorities indicated that the facilities were about 83% complete.
Experience has shown that offering only a favourable regulatory framework is not enough to convince international investors. Without adequate logistical conditions, even pioneer projects face significant delays.
From regulator to industry partner
The Government’s response was to accelerate public investment. Rather than waiting for each company to individually bear the costs of developing infrastructure, Kigali chose to take on part of this effort, creating conditions to reduce the installation costs of future operators.
This approach is close to the industrial policy model that Rwanda has followed in other strategic sectors, in which the State seeks to remove barriers to private investment by building infrastructure and simplifying administration.
Although the Government continues to disseminate little information on the strategy for cannabis, official documents show that this crop is part of a national plan to promote high-value-added agricultural exports, says Cannabiz Africa.
An exclusively export-oriented market
Since October 2020, Rwanda only allows the production of cannabis for export. Domestic consumption remains prohibited and remains subject to some of the most severe sanctions in the region. Licensed companies operate under strict security requirements, including permanent surveillance, access control, video surveillance systems and monitoring by the authorities, in order to prevent any diversion of production to the domestic market.
This option distinguishes Rwanda from some more mature markets, where the development of the industry has been accompanied by the creation of national medicinal cannabis programmes. In Kigali, the entire strategy is based on exporting and raising foreign exchange.
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