We revealed in our last issue that the regulatory authority in Rwanda was carrying out reflections on

the practice of type approval in the country. As a matter of fact, lines are shifting because the

regulator has brought many changes to type approval over the last months.

The Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA) first suspended the practice of type approval for a

period. Later on, the agency indicated that it would only type approve equipment coming from

companies having a local representation in the country. Today, companies established under the

Rwandan law are allowed to submit their equipment for approval. The regulator made this

exceptional arrangement until the texts under elaboration are ready and published. The regulatory

agency aims at resuming approvals during this period of reflection and adoption of texts. According

to the information available to us, the new texts will be implemented in the next two or three

months. The new provisions will probably include rising approval fees because the regulator has

been thinking about modifying its pricing. The other essential information is about the demand for a

sample concerning some materials submitted for approval. These materials include

ï‚· Telephone equipment

ï‚· Tablets

ï‚· Laptops

ï‚· Keyless Entry

ï‚· Handheld equipment

All the information is retrieved from our local team permanently located in Rwanda. On many

occasions, the team met the regulator in order to understand the reasons and consequences of the

decisions concerning the practice of type approval. Until these decisions are effectively implemented,

companies that enter or intend to enter the Rwandan telecom market can carry out their activities.

Nevertheless, they are invited to take the necessary measures to cope with the announced changes.

CONSULT IT is closely following the developments of the practice of type approval in Rwanda or in

other parts of the continent in order to better assist our partners. Our local team in Kigali is then

attentive to any information that may be of interest to its partners. The team is also open to hearing

and responding to any concerns: contact@consultit-now.com