Urban Lab Rwanda: Profiles of Developers & Building Material Suppliers

The Urban Lab is a process supported by GIZ, MININFRA and the City of Kigali.  As part of the effort, we spoke with material suppliers and small builders to better understand their activities, challenges, opportunities for growth and how they are addressing the housing challenge in Rwanda.  These private sector players are small businesses, targeting important niche markets with their products and services.  They struggle to access capital, and to grow to scale – in part because their operations are not well recognised by financiers or policy makers.  The following eight profiles offer some insights into the businesses these players run and the challenges they face in meeting the needs of low income households in Rwanda.