[{"bbox": [83, 106, 1147, 319], "category": "Text", "text": "Lack of certainty and predictability has been regularly identified by investors as a major impediment to operating a business in Rwanda; investor protection and after care need to be improved, coupled with a clearer legislative framework for public-private partnerships. In addition, the private sector faces a number of structural constraints including lack of skills, difficult access to finance, low labour productivity, and relatively high transport and energy costs. Contract enforcement, market dominance and dispute resolution remain additional constraints for investment across sectors. In other sectors, specific regulatory issues hamper foreign investment. Attracting investment in the pharmaceutical sector, as the Government aspires to, would require an improved regulatory framework, including a strengthened Rwanda Food and Drug Authority with the adequate level of international certification (see below)."}, {"bbox": [83, 329, 1147, 567], "category": "Text", "text": "Rwanda is a small landlocked country, highly dependent on their neighbouring countries for trade and transit. COVID-19 has had a negative impact on the domestic economic outlook, meaning that the acceleration of export growth will be a fundamental recovery mechanism in the short term. In the medium to long term, structural transformation and export diversification are necessary, with increasingly greater share of high value-added goods and services. To realise the untapped trade potential, the country would need to work with its EAC and broader AfCFTA partners to revive and accelerate economic integration, with respect to trade facilitation, reducing non-tariff barriers, harmonising standards, liberalising investment and services and increasing freedom of movement for professionals. There is also a need in this context to address the regional dimension of digitalisation, for instance in terms of the cross-border data flows framework or e-commerce."}, {"bbox": [83, 580, 1147, 848], "category": "Text", "text": "The mining sector is a critical source of export revenue and foreign exchange. However, limited mining and processing skills coupled with low accessibility to modern technology, are the major issues affecting the potential growth of the mining sector in Rwanda. The use of rudimentary tools leads to low productivity resulting in low output due to slow advancement of technologies, weak hauling of extracted materials, leaving a big percentage of minerals in poorly processed tailings. Moreover, many companies still face limited investments owing to incomplete mineral exploration data, a requirement for attracting strategic foreign investments and/or financial institutions. From a human rights perspective, poor working conditions regularly expose labourers to ill treatment and occupational safety hazards. Accidents resulting in injury and death occur frequently. The UN has also reported use of child labour in underground mining activities. The role of government and employers as duty-bearers in this regard requires significant strengthening."}, {"bbox": [83, 858, 1147, 1099], "category": "Text", "text": "The Rwanda Food and Drug Authority's (RFDA - the Rwandan NRA) regulatory system was benchmarked in November 2018 using the WHO 551 Global Benchmarking Tool (GBT). Despite making determined efforts to address gaps, increasing staff numbers, training and lab functions the RFDA still requires significant technical and managerial support as well as equipment to fully respond to its mandate and ambitions. The RFDA now seeks to attain World Health Organisation (WHO) maturity level 3 to be able to approve marketing registrations required for production and export of drugs, vaccines and other biological products. A new WHO assessment is foreseen in late 2021, but significant challenges remain, including lack of qualified staff to fulfil good manufacturing practices (GMP) inspections; ability to deliver marketing authorisations independently in the long term; sufficient available laboratory equipment and a sustainable financing model to support its ambitions."}, {"bbox": [83, 1110, 1147, 1268], "category": "Text", "text": "Beyond regulatory strengthening, several cross-cutting enablers are also important to consider across all potential models for vaccine manufacturing in Rwanda including managing demand certainty, access to finance, talent and know-how and reliability of infrastructure. The current action will focus as well on skills shortages of pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and industrial know-how driven by scarcity of local talent, resulting in the reliance on foreign expertise. Other barriers would have to be analysed upon confirmed commitment by a company to an investment in Rwanda."}, {"bbox": [83, 1309, 1147, 1363], "category": "Text", "text": "Identification of main stakeholders and corresponding institutional and/or organisational issues (mandates, potential roles, and capacities) to be covered by the action:"}, {"bbox": [83, 1374, 366, 1400], "category": "Section-header", "text": "### Ministry of Youth and Culture"}, {"bbox": [83, 1413, 1147, 1521], "category": "Text", "text": "The Ministry of Youth and Culture (MYCOM) is mandated to create an enabling environment for Youth socio-economic empowerment. Its Directorate for Youth Empowerment leads the development of programmes, projects, strategies and policies related to socio-economic empowerment of young people, including employment promotion, entrepreneurship and skills development, and talent development."}, {"bbox": [83, 1532, 501, 1559], "category": "Section-header", "text": "### Rwanda Information Society Agency (RISA)"}, {"bbox": [83, 1571, 1147, 1625], "category": "Text", "text": "RISA is a government institution, under the remit of the Ministry for ICT and Innovation, with the mission to digitise Rwandan society through increased ICT usage as a catalyst for cross-cutting development. The agency leads the"}, {"bbox": [1051, 1663, 1158, 1687], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 6 of 28"}]