The funding, provided through the World Bank's International Development Association (IDA), will finance the Revenue Improvement and Spending Efficiency Program-for-Results (PforR). The program aims to modernise tax administration, reinforce public investment management, and promote accountability across government systems, ensuring that development outcomes reach citizens and businesses more effectively.
'This program reflects our strong partnership with Rwanda and our shared ambition to scale up transformational governance reforms that create jobs, strengthen fiscal resilience, and improve service delivery for all Rwandans,' said Sahr Kpundeh, World Bank Country Manager for Rwanda, in a statement released in late November.
'By supporting both national institutions and local government structures, the program reinforces Rwanda's decentralisation agenda and helps ensure that development outcomes reach citizens where they live and work.'
The initiative aims to increase domestic revenue mobilisation by expanding the use of electronic billing machines (EBMs) for VAT compliance and modernising property tax registration and valuation systems. It also seeks to enhance national-level public spending efficiency and transparency through improved project feasibility studies, institutionalised asset management, strengthened procurement, and better oversight of state-owned enterprises.
At the local level, the program focuses on improving planning and accountability, ensuring that districts prepare evidence-based development strategies, publish budget performance reports, strengthen financial management practices, and design viable local economic development projects.
The program is aligned with Rwanda's Second National Strategy for Transformation (NST-2), which emphasises an efficient, transparent, and citizen-centred public sector. It builds on over two decades of World Bank support for Rwanda's public financial management reforms, which have positioned the country as a regional leader in accountable governance.
The reforms also leverage technology, including piloting AI-enabled functionalities within the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS), aimed at reducing operational inefficiencies and enhancing financial oversight.
'This program represents a significant step forward in Rwanda's efforts to expand its domestic resource base and ensure that every franc is used efficiently,' said Meron Tadesse Techane, World Bank Senior Financial Management Specialist.
'By leveraging technology, strengthening institutions, and incentivizing good practices at both national and district levels, the program will help the government deliver better services, build trust with citizens, and expand opportunities for private sectorâ€"led job creation.'
Direct beneficiaries include national ministries, state-owned companies, and all 30 districts, while citizens and businesses will benefit indirectly from a more predictable public finance system, higher-quality services, and better-managed public investments.
The IDA, established in 1960, helps the world's poorest countries by providing grants and low- or zero-interest loans for projects that stimulate economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve lives. Rwanda is among the 40 African countries benefiting from IDA financing.
Wycliffe Nyamasege
