Rwanda

Total Projects: 119
Project Spending: $431,650

Colonized by Belgium in the early 20th century, Rwanda became independent in 1962. The Rwandan Civil War began in 1990 and soon devolved into the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, which was the result of a longstanding ethnic rivalry between the Hutu and the Tutsi -- a rivalry that had been instigated and inflamed by Belgian colonial authorities. The genocide killed a million people (a tenth of the population), mostly Tutsi but also many moderate Hutu, and created as many or more refugees. It fundamentally altered the dynamics of the surviving society. Rwanda is a nation in a perpetual state of recovery -- a recovery which remains fragile and uncertain. The country is currently led by President Paul Kagame, leader of the Rwandan Patriotic Front, and one of the most important actors in bringing an end to the genocide. His administration has greatly reorganized the Rwandan state, although there are legitimate questions regarding its commitment to civil rights and political freedom. Many Rwandan households today are headed by orphans and women and extreme poverty rates in excess of 60% persist in rural areas. Poverty and child mortality rates have fallen in light of a successful health system mobilization. An estimated 60% of the population lives on less than $2.00 per day which is a significant decrease from 1996 (World Bank, 2010). 37% of Rwandan children suffer from stunting and are unable to grow to their full potential because of a lack of food, down from 43% in 2012. Agriculture employs 80% of the labor force, but only accounts for a third of the country’s GDP (World Bank, UNDP).