MDGs Progress and Challenges in Rwanda, 2008
* Progress
Rwanda has made impressive efforts at achieving several MDGs, overcoming major setbacks during the genocide in 1994. This progress has been due to political commitment at the highest level, and international support for well designed and executed national scale programs.
Today, primary enrolment rates are 97 percent , largely due to the government's decision to make primary education free and mandatory, backed by donor support and sensitization to encourage sending children to school.
The gender equality in primary and secondary education target has already been met, together with other milestones; women's participation in parliament is now more than 50 percent (56% in 2008 ), the highest in the world. Similar high-level political leadership has led to HIV prevalence rates falling from 13 percent (2000) to 3 percent (2006).
Malaria fatalities have reduced from 9.3 percent (2001) to 2.9 percent (2006 ) through a deliberate strategy of universal distribution of insecticide treated bed nets, and modern treatment based on artemisinin combination therapy.
Compared to 61% in 2000, the access to improved water source rate (71%) is high but and MDG 7 (82%) is attainable by 2015.
* Challenges
At the midpoint of the MDGs, Rwanda continues to face critical challenges. Despite high economic growth, poverty rates have not fallen proportionately, declining only by 4 percentage points, from 60 percent (2000) to 56.9 percent (2006). Child malnutrition is almost stagnant at 22 percent (2006). These high rates are largely due to low agricultural productivity. Achieving MDG 1 will require a focus on increasing rural incomes and agricultural output.
Despite recent progress, child mortality rate ( 103 per 1000 ; Mini DHS 2008) remains a challenge. Similarly high maternal mortality rates (750 per 100,000 births ) point to the need for greater investment in trained health staff and equipment at health facilities, with the need to encourage institutionalized births in rural areas.
One of the biggest challenges facing Rwanda is the insufficient investment in infrastructure for energy, water and sanitation, and transportation.
The combined pressures of agricultural production, high population, economic expansion and rising energy needs are increasing the environmental stress in Rwanda .
Rwanda needs to strengthen its capacity to deliver the necessary services and attract adequate financing for scaling up .
* Opportunities
The Government of Rwanda has made achieving the MDGs central to its policy framework, as defined in the EDPRS 2008-2012.
The Government has prioritized infrastructure and agriculture, recognizing that these sectors require greater investment.
In addition, the government has launched a major effort to scale up MDG interventions through the Vision 2020 Umurenge Program, one of the 3 flagships of the EDPRS.
Donor confidence in Rwanda is high ; official development assistance stands at approximately $67 per capita , which is higher than the average for the region, but below the $85 per capita promised under the Gleneagles commitments .
This offers an opportunity for the international system to strengthen its support to the government under the MDG Africa Steering and Working Group processes . Specific investment opportunities exist in the areas of modern inputs for increasing agricultural production; small scale water management, access to energy and roads, improved environmental sustainability, and scaling up basic health care, including family planning services.
The successes in the areas of education, gender and HIV and malaria control offer a strong foundation for donors to scale up support to achieve the other MDGs.
|
Rwanda
