• Three decades later, the Rwanda genocide elicits several unanswered questions about the events leading up to, during, and after the killings.
• Who was responsible for shooting down President Juvenal Habyarimana’s plane?
• Nine years after the closure of the ICTR tribunal, high-profile fugitives remain at large, and many survivors continue to seek justice.

It is that time of the year again, April 7, when the world marks a somber remembrance of the Rwanda genocide. This year, as we observe the 30th anniversary of the genocide that ripped through the heart of this small East African country, the world is yet to come to terms with some hard questions.

In just 100 days, from April to July 1994, an estimated 800,000 people were brutally massacred, targeted primarily for being Tutsi or moderate Hutu.

Despite the passage of three decades, the Rwanda genocide remains a subject of intense scrutiny and reflection, not only …

• International arrivals increased from 1.48 million in 2022 to 1.95 million as the sector turned around from lows of 569,848 at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
• Last year’s strong performance saw the country record the highest earnings in tourism receipts, which went up to $2.7 billion, up from $2 billion.
• The US remained the single largest market source even as Africa accounted for the lion’s share of total arrivals during the year, with the East African region remaining key. 

Kenya’s tourist arrivals grew 31.5 per cent last year, official government data indicates, as the tourism sector recovered to pre-pandemic levels not only in the country but globally.

International arrivals increased from 1.48 million in 2022 to 1.95 million as the sector turned around from lows of 569,848 at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.

Last year’s strong performance saw the country record the highest earnings …

• Kenya is keen on extending its pipeline to Malaba (Kenya-Uganda border), with Uganda expected to construct a link line to Kampala.
• According to the Shippers Council of Eastern Africa (SCEA), Mombasa used to command up to 70% of transit business, but this has decreased to 60 per cent.
• Uganda imports an average of 2.5 billion litres of petroleum annually, valued at about $2 billion, with KPC handling at least 90 per cent of the volumes.

Kenya is courting Uganda in a fresh bid to retain and possibly increase petroleum exports amid increased competition from neighbouring Tanzania. In recent months, East Africa’s economic powerhouse has come under pressure from Tanzania, which is eyeing to tap more transit markets for imports and exports into the hinterland through the Dar es Salaam Port.

In the latest developments, Tanzania has offered to license Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) to import petroleum products through Dar …

• Kenyan doctors have rejected a $18.3 million (KES2.4 billion) offer to return to work.
• The top demands of over 7,000 medics include immediate hiring of trainee doctors, adequate medical insurance coverage for doctors and their dependents, and fixing delays in pay.
• The labour boycott also calls for paying doctors working in public hospitals as part of their higher degree courses.

In a move that further throws Kenya’s healthcare system into a spin, public hospital doctors under the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists, and Dentists Union (KPMDU) lobby have rejected a $18.3 million (KES2.4 billion) offer to leave the streets and go back to work.

The latest twist underlines the deepening rift between healthcare professionals and Kenyan officials amid a strike that has now stretched into its third week since March 15.

Representing over 7,000 members, KMPDU initiated the strike to address several critical issues, including the demand for the payment of …

• New investment in Tanzania’s railways sector is expected to directly benefit nearly 900,000 people and indirectly impact an estimated 3.5 million.
• Tanzania operates two railway systems, totaling 3,682 km in length.

Tanzania railway sector is poised for immense growth as the World Bank poured significant funding by approving $200 million in financing from the International Development Association (IDA) which is a part of the bank.

According to available information from the World Bank statement made on Friday, the bank said the financing for the second phase of the Tanzania Intermodal and Rail Development Project (TIRP-2) will improve safety, climate resilience, and operational efficiency along this railway segment.

Read also: AfDB approves $696.4M financing for Tanzania-Burundi-DRC railway project

Tanzania railway plan anchored on Dar- Morogoro SGR

The funding comes a few weeks after Tanzania Railways Corporation (TRC) began its inaugural trial journey of the electric Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) train …

• The IMF has approved an expansion of the original economic rescue program for Egypt by $5 billion.
• Spillovers from the recent conflict in Gaza and Israel aggravated the shaky economic situation in Egypt.
• Egypt has recently taken difficult but necessary reforms to correct the country’s microeconomic imbalance.

IMF’s Economic Rescue Program for Egypt

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has completed the first and second reviews of Egypt’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF)arrangement, approving an expansion of the original economic rescue program by $5 billion.

The IMF had initially approved a $3 billion loan in December 2022 but has …