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Prosper Ndlovu in Kigali, Rwanda

IF you are arriving in Kigali in Rwanda today, keep an eye out for motorbikes. It’s the rush hour on a normal working day in the East African country’s largest and populous capital city, located in the prime geographical heart.

Zoom into the fascinating tropical forest natural green environment, with rolling hills, and a series of valleys and ridges, joined by steep slopes, the blend of modern high-rise buildings decorated with flowers, good roads, neatly paved pedestrian walkways and street cameras, these testify that indeed Kigali is one of Africa’s fast-growing and transforming cities.

In the midst of this splendid outlook is the overwhelming sight of motorbikes traffic and their ‘‘dangerous’’ speed while carrying passengers, as they navigate the congested roads with private cars and other road users, which quickly captivates every visitor’s attention.

Across the city centre several motorbikes will be strategically parked on roadsides and intersections, ready for clients, while some will be picking and dropping off passengers anywhere in town, and this is part of the normal routine.

One could hardly see commuter omnibuses, and passengers — both ordinary people including women, and professionals — apparently use motorbikes as a tried and tested means of transportation.

“If you are in a hurry to work, business or anywhere in and around town motorbikes are the way to go, they are cheaper and faster. Authorities have no problem with these as they are licensed and they create jobs,” said one of the locals.

According to local media, there are approximately 120 000 motorbike taxi riders in the country with about 50 000 of them operating in Kigali, some driving up to 10 hours a day, almost covering hundreds of kilometres a day.

Known locally and “motos” or “boda bodas” in Kenya and Uganda, motorcycles make up more than half of all vehicles in this part of the world, and are a source of livelihood for many families, providing essential logistics service to many clients.

In fact, the August 2023 edition of Inzozi, the official in-flight magazine of the national carrier, Rwandair, suggests that every year, about 100 million people navigate the East African congested cities including Kigali, on the back of motorcycles.

At any moment, over 50 percent of vehicles on Rwanda’s roads are motorcycle taxis, which provide vital and affordable transport to citizens, says Inzozi.

In 2021, Rwanda adopted a technology driven model to develop the first electric motorbikes on the African continent through its local firm, Ampersand. Today dozens of motorbikes are seen with big yellow boxes where the engine normally is.

These models are actually made in Rwanda with rechargeable Ampersand batteries powering the motorcycles, which contributes to sustainable, quiet and efficient transport with no harmful emissions.

Full story:  www.chronicle.co.zw

“Last year we powered over 20 million kilometres on e-motorcycles and last month we reached 1 000 e-motos and will surpass 10 000 by mid-2024,” according to Mr Josh Whale, Ampersand’s chief executive officer and co-founder.

A motorbike ride costs an average of 2 000 Rwandan Francs for a minimum distance of a kilometre and this is reviewed upwards depending on client distance. The city also has bicycles to hire for about an hour by anyone within the city centre and these excite tourist visitors.

Like Zimbabwe and the rest of African cities, Kigali has a huge presence of small to medium scale businesses that operate in diverse sectors.

A majority of these operate in the retail space trading household consumer goods, clothing and electricals, among other. From the observations made, there is minimal industrial production activity, at least in the city centre.

What struck my attention most was the orderly manner and the cleanliness of the city in general and the SMES spaces in particular. Most of them operate on small partitioned spaces in big buildings with sparsely spaced designated stalls on selected streets and more downtown.

“We always ensure to keep our environment clean and we don’t litter the streets. There are also workers dedicated to maintaining cleanliness in our workspace,” said one of the SMEs operators.

With such higher levels of cleanliness, enhanced adoption of green climate solutions and reduced emissions, Kigali is a proper expression of a ‘smart city’ model.

Typical of Africa’s distinct natural talent, art and craft is a big business theme in Kigali where scores of ordinary people produce a variety of handicraft products and garment designing for the local market and tourists. Some are into curio making.

The hospitality of locals is amazing and visitors are given a friendly welcome characteristic of African values of Ubuntu and a sense of collective identity. However, language is a challenge as many locals are more conversant with French as opposed to English.

There is, however, a noticeable tight security system in Kigali with visitors being subjected to intense body search inspections and baggage scanning upon entrance at hotels, convention centres, shopping malls and big shops.

The security system is being aided by the installation of cameras in buildings, and street and robot intersections to enhance surveillance, including curbing speeding by motorists.

As part of an expansion drive in line with its ambitious development master plan, Kigali is undergoing massive construction with new infrastructure projects at different stages of implementation in the city centre and beyond.

Reports from the local authority suggest that Kigali has a population of about 1,7 million people and is the most visited city in Rwanda, hence it houses numerous tourism sites, modern hotels and a centrally placed international airport.

Kigali has reportedly registered rapid growth in the last two and a half decades, driven by the government’s transformative vision.