Share this:

Authors:

Principal Investigator: Dr. Radjab NYABYENDA, Director of Research at IPAR Rwanda
Co-Principal Investigator: Benson Turyasingura, Research Fellow at IPAR-Rwanda

Published: 30 December 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.64116/Report.2025.InclusiveGrowthRW

Download full report

This publication is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of BMZ or GIZ.

Executive summary

The purpose of this study was to carry out a situational analysis of inequality, informality and inclusive economic growth in Rwanda. The study was guided by specific objectives, namely examining the various dimensions of inequality; carrying out a situation analysis of inequality and informality on inclusive economic growth; identifying existing policies aimed at promoting inclusive economic growth; and analyzing trends in indicators of inequality, informality and inclusive economic growth in Rwanda. The study used secondary data from reliable sources such as government reports, international organizations, research studies, and statistical data repositories. On spatial inequality, findings show that 40% of the population are urban poor, 45% rural poor, 10% middle class, and 5% wealthy. The GINI coefficient stood at 0.507 in 2000–2001, 0.522 in 2005–2006, 0.490 in 2010–2011, 0.448 in 2013–2014, 0.437 in 2016–2017, and 0.53 in 2019, indicating persistently high income inequality.

The informal sector employs a large share of the labor force but is associated with low wages, poor working conditions, and limited access to social protection and credit, constraining productivity and growth. Men account for 59% of the workforce while women represent 41%, highlighting gender disparities. Although poverty declined from 58.9% in 2000/01 to 39.1% in 2013/14, it stagnated around 38.2% in 2016/17, indicating a slowdown in poverty reduction. Rwanda has adopted policies such as Vision 2050 and NST2, aligned with Agenda 2063 and the SDGs, to promote inclusive growth and poverty reduction. However, bridging the gender gap remains critical, and long-term transformation requires prioritizing high-growth, job-creating sectors such as agro-processing, tourism, and ICT.

Keywords: Inequality, Informality, Inclusive economic growth, gender disparities, poverty reduction.