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Rwanda seeks sustainable green economy by 2018

Xinhua, April 20, 2016 Adjust font size:

Rwanda has announced plans to achieve sustainable green economy by 2018, according to the country's ministry of natural resources.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday at a high-level policy workshop on the Rwanda's Green Growth and Climate Resilience Strategy, Vincent Biruta, Rwandan minister of natural resources said that the country is committed to green economy.

"Rwanda has strengthened its commitment to green economic transformation and within the next two years, our country will have significantly reduced oil based energy and efforts are underway to ensure that," he said.

"Among the mechanisms, we have to ensure the green growth strategy is integrated in our day-to-day work and our longer term plans. We are working hard to become a climate resilient nation by preparing for climate change and managing our natural resources in a sustainable manner," he said.

The meeting, organised by the ministry and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), sought to chart the way forward towards realising green economy in the next few years.

The small central African country has been committed to addressing the challenge of climate change since 1998 when it ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and later the protocol in 2003.

Rwanda's Green Growth and Climate Resilience Strategy was launched in 2011 as one of the key steps to a sustainable, secure future and to ensure the country is prepared for the risks associated with climate change and population growth.

Biruta stated that the national environment and climate fund is already operational and is financing green projects with special focus on green innovations.

Rwanda is among only 20 institutions globally accredited to access the international Green Climate Fund from which the government will leverage substantial funding for climate change adaptation projects.

Lamin Manneh, resident coordinator of the UNDP, commended Rwanda's steps towards achieving green economy.

"The UN is fully supportive of the implementation of the strategy in both the long term and short term action plans. I believe Rwanda will achieve the green economy in the next a few years" he said.

The country in 2008 passed a law that banned the importation and use of polythene bags, while possession or smuggling them into the country would entail heavy penalties. Endit