KIGALI, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- Rwanda's trade deficit reduced by 24.9 in August 2017 on robust export growth compared to the same period last year, Rwanda's finance minister said Thursday.
While presenting recent economic development and budget implementation to the Rwandan parliament, Claver Gatete, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, said the country's trade deficit reduced by 24.9 percent, from about 1179 million U.S. dollars in August of 2016 to 885.35 million dollars this August.
"Formal exports increased by 44.9 percent while imports decreased by 7.7 percent this year. Exports are projected to continue growing steadily with observed improvements in commodity prices and growing contribution of mineral exports," he added.
Gatete said Rwanda has embarked on promoting locally made products and boosting horticultural crops for exports which will significantly reduce reliance on imports.
The campaign dubbed "Made in Rwanda Products" seeks to discourage the use of imported goods which are or can be produced locally by making the goods produced in the country reliable, durable and affordable.
According to him, Rwanda's economic activity is projected to recover progressively in 2017 and higher in 2018 and over the medium term.
In his presentation, Gatete said that inflation continues to drop below the medium-term target of 5 percent which stands at 3.8 percent presently.
The country targets to double the current average annual GDP from the current 5.4 percent growth rate to more than 10 percent to be able to reach upper middle income status by 2035.
Rwanda's economic pillars that include tourism, manufacturing, retail and wholesale and mining are also projected to deliver above 10 percent of GDP growth under the 2035 blueprint. Enditem
