Rwanda Signs Investment Agreement with American Comedian Steve Harvey
Rwanda, the land of a thousand hills, joins a list of African nations partnering with Hollywood stars to promote tourism. This new agreement will establish a university institution in Kigali. Steve Harvey will invest in education, health, and cinema in Rwanda.
Promoting Tourism and Investment in Rwanda
Tourism in Rwanda is booming, and to accelerate the process, the country has signed an agreement with a famous American artist, Steve Harvey. This initiative is part of the strategies deployed by African countries to uniquely market their tourist offerings to the world. Kigali’s decision follows similar measures taken by Tanzania, which signed an agreement with Hollywood star Idris Elba to launch a film studio in Zanzibar, an archipelago of this East African country.
In Rwanda, the agreement was signed at the end of 2024 between the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) and BILT LLC, an American company owned by Steve Harvey. In a press release shared after the signing of the agreement, RDB CEO Francis Gatare stated that the partnership aims to promote tourism and investment in Rwanda.
Steve Harvey was in Kigali last December for the signing ceremony. It was the second time the artist visited this rapidly growing tourist destination in East Africa. His first visit was at the recent International Automobile Federation (FIA) awards ceremony held in Kigali.
36 % Growth for Rwanda’s Tourism Sector
In his speech, Francis Gatare, CEO of the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), said : « The signed agreement covers skills development in cinema, media, and education, as well as health and wellness initiatives ». The pact includes plans to establish a university institution through Harvey’s education company, Melt Education.
Rwanda’s tourism sector is experiencing 36 % growth, and the government aims to develop it further and faster. The sector generated 620 million USD in 2023, compared to 445 million USD in 2022. However, the plan was to record 800 million USD in tourism revenue last year; exact data for 2024 have not yet been published.
Tourism Sector in Rwanda
According to the World Bank, the tourism sector has the potential to continue significantly boosting Rwanda’s economic growth. In its 20th edition of the Rwanda Economy Report, the World Bank highlights that nature-based tourism (NBT), a sub-sector of tourism, generates about 80 % of Rwanda’s foreign exchange.
Rwanda is especially famous for its rare silverback gorillas, which attract a large number of tourists to Rwanda each year. However, although gorilla trekking in Rwanda is a unique tourist attraction, it faces competition from other wildlife destinations in the region. Additionally, there are restrictions on the number of permits issued each year due to the need to preserve the gorillas’ habitat and population, limiting Rwanda’s ability to increase prices or the number of tourists involved.
The World Bank advises Rwanda to diversify its tourism to reduce its current reliance on gorilla trekking. The World Bank also points to several other challenges, including the risk of environmental degradation. In particular, the decline of natural vegetation and the deterioration of forests threaten to reduce wildlife populations.
Harmful Factors of Climate Change
It is essential to consider the harmful factors of climate change. Rising temperatures, resulting from climate change, are likely to reduce tourism demand in tropical regions and further degrade natural habitats. If Rwanda wants to mitigate these challenges and increase the sector’s economic impact, the World Bank urges the country to increase private sector investments to promote nature-based tourism.
By collaborating with the American artist and businessman, Rwanda follows the World Bank’s advice to seek private sector investments to stimulate tourism growth. « It is important to rely on diversified funding sources for the public and private sectors, including debt and non-debt instruments, and to establish the necessary policy framework to encourage investment in nature-based tourism », the Bank states in the report.
According to the report, increasing the amount of investment in natural capital will support the sector and improve fiscal sustainability and growth. « But, more importantly, encouraging private investment in natural capital through public-private partnerships would increase Rwanda’s GDP more than relying solely on public resources to achieve this », the Bank warns.
Creating Funds to Support Biodiversity
The World Bank explains that the private sector can be involved through outsourcing investments and providing management services in state-owned protected areas or licensing commercial activities adjacent to these areas. Sustainability-linked financing instruments, debt-free solutions linked to carbon markets, and equity investments led by the private sector are some of the proven approaches to accessing private financing for nature-based tourism.
Rwanda can issue bonds based on conservation activities or what it describes as green investments, as well as create funds to support biodiversity and climate change adaptation. To further encourage private sector participation, Rwanda is advised to consider rewarding companies’ emission reductions and also discouraging deforestation and forest degradation.
Tanzania Signs Agreement with Idris Elba
In a similar approach to Rwanda, Tanzania has taken a step ahead of its neighbor by soliciting international influencers to promote its tourism sector and attract investments in various other areas. In 2023, Tanzania entrusted Hollywood star Idris Elba with the task of launching a film studio in Zanzibar.
The British actor met with Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland. Following the discussions, the President’s spokesperson issued a press release stating that « if successful, the project will help not only Tanzania but also East and Central Africa ».
Mr. Elba is a Golden Globe winner, and Tanzania is not the only African country where he plans to build a film studio. He publicly announced that he would build another one in Ghana. The movie star also plans to invest in a smart city in his father’s home country, Sierra Leone, and restore an island off the coast of this West African country.
