Country Factsheet
Rwanda
This factsheet provides an overview of economic inclusion programs in Rwanda. Economic inclusion programs are a bundle of coordinated, multidimensional interventions that support individuals, households, and communities in raising their incomes and building their assets. The data used for this factsheet comes from the Partnership for Economic Inclusion’s Landscape Survey 2023.
Country Facts
Region
Sub-Saharan Africa
Population
13.46 million
Income Group
Low income
FCV country (WB FY24 list)
No
Poverty Headcount (share of population below the poverty line)
National Poverty Line
38.20%
Multidimensional Poverty Index
48.82%
$2.15/day (2017 PPP)
52.00%
Programs
Number of economic inclusion programs
14Institutional delivery (lead agency)
- Nongovernment-led
- Government-led
Geographic area
- Rural only
- Urban/peri
- Mix (urban & rural)
Participants
Number of participants
516,785Number of people benefiting
2.33 millionParticipants served by government-led programs (%)
50.64%Main Program Objectives
Wage employment
Self-employment
Income diversification
Productivity
Food security
Market access
Women's empowerment
Social inclusion
Social cohesion
Financial inclusion
Social services
Climate resilience
- More than 2/3 of programs
- Between 1/3 and less than 2/3 of programs
- Fewer than 1/3 of programs
Participant Profile
Targeted Poverty Segments
Poor
Extreme poor
Ultra-poor
Those above the poverty line
Doesn't target by poverty level
Targeted Population Groups
Women
Children
Youth
Older people
Persons with disabilities
Displacement-affected
Climate-affected
Marginalized
Conflict-affected
- More than 2/3 of programs
- Between 1/3 and less than 2/3 of programs
- Fewer than 1/3 of programs
CORE PROGRAM COMPONENTS
Transfer
Business capital
Wage employment facilitation
Skills training
Coaching
Financial services facilitation
Market links
Climate resilience support
ECONOMIC INCLUSION PROGRAMS SURVEYED
| Program Name | Year program began | Lead Agencies | Program Description | No. of Current Participants | % Female Participants | Poverty Targeting | Digital |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Area Program (AP) | 2020 | World Vision Rwanda | The program is a community development initiative to address the causes of poverty for ultra-poor households. | 4,079 | 51-75% of participants | Targets XP/UP only | Yes |
| Caritas Archdiocese of Kigali | 2021 | Caritas Archdiocese of Kigali | The program assists people in need and promotes integral human development through social, health, and economic initiatives that improve livelihoods, build resilience, and support economic development of the active poor through cooperatives and income-generating activities, while providing interventions in cases of emergency. | 460 | 51-75% of participants | Targets poor broadly | No |
| Developing Human Capital | 2022 | World Relief Rwanda | The program is implemented in areas with high stunting rates and harnesses the power of integrated programming for nutrition and social protection to address the complex dimensions of poverty. | 9,050 | 51-75% of participants | Targets XP/UP only | Yes |
| Graduation Pilot Pathways to Economic Inclusion and Self-reliance of the Refugees and their Host Communities | 2020 | CARITAS Rwanda | The program aims to graduate vulnerable refugee and host community households out of extreme poverty. | 1,143 | 51-75% of participants | Targets XP/UP only | Yes |
| Green Graduation | 2023 | Concern Worldwide Rwanda | The program uses the graduation approach, combining social protection, livelihood promotion, financial inclusion, and social empowerment with a focus on environmental protection, to graduate households out of extreme poverty in a sustainable manner. | 2,100 | Targets XP/UP only | Yes | |
| Poverty Alleviating Coalition (PAC) Project | 2021 | World Vision International | The program aims to graduate households of refugees and host community members out of poverty, by providing a package that includes mindset and social behavior change, financial inclusion, livelihood promotion, seed capital, mentoring, and coaching. | 2,921 | 51-75% of participants | Targets poor broadly | Yes |
| Rwanda Priority Skills for Growth Program | 2017 | Ministry of Education | The program aims to expand opportunities for acquiring quality, market-relevant skills in energy, transport, logistics, and manufacturing by reinforcing governance of the skills development system and capacity development, providing market-relevant trainings, and upgrading job-relevant skills for sustained employability. | 3,548 | 26-50% of participants | Does not target by poverty level | Yes |
| Social Economic Inclusion of Refugees and Host Communities in Rwanda Project | 2019 | Five Districts hosting refugee camps, Development Bank of Rwanda and Rwanda Transport Development Agency | The program seeks to improve access to basic services and economic opportunities for refugees and host communities, and support environmental management, in the target areas. | 116,628 | 26-50% of participants | Does not target by poverty level | Yes |
| Stronger Women Stronger Nations Program | 1997 | Women for Women Rwanda | The program empowers ultra poor conflict-affected women through informational and vocational trainings, monthly cash stipends, resources, referrals, access to savings groups and connections to networks. | 703 | All (100% of participants are female) | Targets poor broadly | Yes |
| The Sustainable Livelihoods Enhancement Scheme | 2017 | Local Administrative Entities Development Agency (LODA) | The program provides eligible households with a two-year package of interventions, including the Vision 2020 Umurenge safety nets, asset transfers, skills training, financial literacy, entrepreneurship training, coaching, linkage to markets and value chains and other inputs tailored to their needs. | 141,539 | Targets poor broadly | Yes | |
| Village Enterprise Rwanda | 2021 | Village Enterprise | The program is an innovative, cost-effective and evidence-backed graduation program in Northern Rwanda by Village Enterprise. | 5,058 | 76-99% of participants | Targets XP/UP only | Yes |
| Volcanoes Community Resilience Project | 2021 | Ministry of Environment | The project aims to reduce the risk of flooding, strengthen land management, and improve livelihoods of people in the Volcanoes Region | Targets poor broadly | Yes | ||
| Zoe Empowers | 2007 | Zoe Empowers Rwanda | The program empowers orphaned children and vulnerable youth to overcome poverty through a family-based and peer-led program that promotes safety, health, and skills for long-term success. | 11,513 | 51-75% of participants | Targets XP/UP only | Yes |
Only programs that have given their consent to share their program data are included in this table
The Partnership for Economic Inclusion (PEI) is a global platform that unites non-governmental organizations, UN agencies, research institutions, funding partners, and the World Bank to support government adoption and scale up of economic inclusion programs that empower vulnerable people to lift themselves out of extreme poverty.
| DNA: Does Not Apply; FY: Fiscal Year; FCV: Fragility, Conflict, and Violence; MPI: Multidimensional Poverty Index; NPL: National Poverty Line; N/A: Not available; WB: World Bank |