Senators call for action to curb reliance on cooking appliance imports

Senators have raised concerns over Rwanda's reliance on sourcing cooking appliances outside of the country, calling it unsustainable. They urged support to build the capacity of local producers to reduce dependence on imported products. The issue was discussed on Wednesday, June 4, during a session of the Senate’s Committee on Economic Development and Finance, which was conducting oversight on government actions to increase citizens’ access to clean cooking technologies. The session brought together senators, representatives from the Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD), and members of the Energy Private Developers (EPD)—an umbrella association of private companies in Rwanda’s energy sector. ALSO READ: Rwanda’s cooking gas storage project reaches 60% completion EPD representatives reported that all gas- and electricity-powered cook stoves are currently imported due to the lack of domestic production capacity. However, the private sector does have the ability to manufacture stoves that use charcoal or firewood. Monica Keza, Country Director at DelAgua – a carbon project developer in areas such as clean cookstoves – said that the organisation provides tier 3 cookstoves, which are 43 per cent efficient and reduce household firewood use by up to 71 per cent. She said they import these stoves because locally produced ones did not meet their standards. “We cannot buy the locally made stoves because they are tier 2—they are not the best,” Keza said. She also cited a relatively higher volume among the factors for not sourcing the product locally. “We purchase 200,000 cookstoves per month, a demand that local manufacturers cannot meet. As a result, we import them from Nairobi,” she said. However, she added that if local producers received adequate financing and improved their manufacturing capabilities, they could become viable suppliers. ALSO READ: Rwandans could start using methane gas for cooking in 2027 Serge Wilson Muhizi, CEO of EPD, acknowledged that tier 2 and tier 3 stoves dominate the market but noted that tier 2 models have been phased out – due to their low efficiency in saving firewood or charcoal. “We are now required to sell only tier 3 cook stoves, which use firewood or pellets,” he said. Senator Marie Rose Mureshyankwano argued that the country should not be importing stoves that use charcoal or firewood. She compared the situation to Rwanda’s former reliance on imported seeds— maize, wheat, and soybeans—until it developed domestic production capacity. She warned that importing cookstoves could contribute to higher prices, and called for the training of students at Integrated Polytechnic Regional Centres (IPRCs) to promote local production. “This can make stoves more affordable and create jobs for Rwandans,” she said, urging EPD and BRD to support such initiatives, especially to meet the high demand from organisations like DelAgua. Fulgence Nsengiyumva, Chairperson of the Senate’s Committee on Economic Development and Finance, said the country could gradually reduce stove imports by boosting local production. Jean Bosco Nsengiyumva, Managing Director of Green Hanga Ltd, said that although many local companies initially produced tier 2 stoves, some have since upgraded to tier 3 thanks to training from experts. He indicated that his firm makes cookstoves depending on the demand, estimating that it can produce more than 500 per day – which translates into 15,000 cookstoves per month. Companies capable of producing tier 3 stoves are now operating locally and are open to customer feedback for product improvement, he said. However, he voiced concern that the certification process takes too long—four to six months—delaying product development. He suggested this be shortened to one month to support faster innovation. Philbert Dusenge, Coordinator of Energy Access and Quality Improvement Clean Cooking Project at BRD, said local producers had improved significantly through capacity-building under a project implemented by the government and its partners. “This helped them move from very low-efficiency tier 2 stoves to more efficient tier 3 models,” he said, pointing out that the production of tier 2 stoves was officially phased out in December 2023. “This shows there is hope that even the remaining imports can eventually be eliminated,” he concluded. EPD proposed conducting a study to assess the feasibility of producing tier 4 and tier 5 cook stoves—those powered by gas and electricity—to attract private investment in cleaner technologies. Currently, 75 per cent of households in Rwanda still rely on firewood as their main cooking fuel. According to the Seventh Integrated Household Living Conditions Survey (EICV 7) published by the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR) on April 16, 18.8 per cent of households use charcoal and only 5.4 per cent use gas. In urban areas, charcoal is used by 51 per cent of households, compared to only 6 per cent in rural areas. Gas usage is significantly higher in urban settings—17 per cent of households—versus just 1 per cent in rural communities, highlighting continued disparities in access to clean cooking energy.

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Senators call for action to curb reliance on cooking appliance imports