APA – Kigali (Rwanda) – Rwandan President Paul Kagame has confirmed that construction works at the new international airport in Bugesera district (East) will be completed by 2023.
Local media quoted Kagame Wednesday as saying that with the current pace, there could be something up and running in 2024.
Kagame was speaking in Doha, Qatar, during a chat with Bloomberg TV’s Jennifer Zabasajja, Chief Africa Correspondent, at the 3rd Qatar Economic Forum underway in the Gulf country.
At the forum, which brought together Heads of State and Government, CEO’s of international institutions, leading global investors and other stakeholders, Kagame hailed Rwanda’s strategic partnership with Qatar and other countries in the quest for development and cooperation.
On the aviation front, he said that Rwanda continues to cordially partner with a leading airline, Qatar Airways.
In particular, Kagame pointed to the new international airport that is under construction in Bugesera district, which he said that both countries are partnering to see tangible results by the end of the first or second quarter in 2024.
The airport is expected to be fully operational by 2026.
In December 2019, Rwanda upgraded Bugesera Airport capacity when the country and Qatar Airways concluded an investment partnership.
The partnership features three agreements to build, own, and operate the state-of-the-art facility.
Under the new deal, Qatar Airways agreed to take a 60% stake in the project, which, as a whole, is valued at around $1.3 billion – compared to the initial $818 million.
CU/abj/APA