New measures to introduce the mandatory use of smart meters for all taxi-moto operators that was announced to be effective this week was halted by the government to iron out discrepancies that had arisen, an official source revealed Sunday in Kigali.
The move was aimed at continuing to push for the reduction of cash-based payments, in a bid to adopt digital payments and to modernize the taxi-moto sector.
However, Ernest Nsabimana, the Director General of Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA) said the inspection and mandatory use of metres were suspended for a week.`
Since January 7, commercial motorcycle riders in the city of Kigali were expected to have smart meters to determine how much a client pays, in addition to facilitating digital payments.
In the past, drivers and customers often argued about the fare of a trip, but now, the meter automatically determines that.
Since COVID-19 might be spread by touching paper money and coins, the government is attempting to adopt a set of measures to promote a cashless economy.
The National Bank of Rwanda’s 2019/20 annual report shows that despite the economic slowdown due to COVID-19 shutdowns, the country’s financial system remained sound and prices remained stable.
Bank sector profitability and liquidity rates improved for both microfinance institutions (MFI) and banks.
The e-payment to GDP rate increased from 34.6 percent in June 2019 to 54 percent in June 2020.
CU/abj/APA