Cenfri contributes to building the fundamentals of welfare-enhancing digital economies. We prioritise digital transformation that is inclusive, sustainable, opportunity-creating and has appropriate safeguards. Digital transformation underpins much of our work and ranges from payments digitalisation to digital economy diagnostics, and digital skills assessments to direct digitalisation support.
Cenfri also collaborates with policymakers and other public and private sector stakeholders in data-driven decision-making that is calibrated to the data available and is designed to strengthen the existing skills and data governance processes within these organisations. The Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme is our flagship evidence-informed policymaking and data-for-decisions intervention, but we have considerable experience in using evidence to generate insights and inform policymaking and business decision-making with a view to improved economic development outcomes. Our expertise in data, payments and digital identity enables us to contribute to current DPI (digital public infrastructure) conversations.
Open Finance can be defined as the sharing of consumer data between financial service providers (FSPs) and/or third-party providers on the basis of consumer consent. Improved use of data and effective data sharing can support a better functioning market by facilitating greater competition and enabling innovation within the financial sector.
Education is of fundamental importance to Rwanda’s economy; and the country has high policy priorities in providing access across the country. Primary and secondary education are free but there are other costs such as contributions to the school feeding programmes, books, etc. The education sector faces various challenges including low
Agriculture is the largest sector in the Rwandan economy, with 75% of the adult population generating their livelihoods from the sector. Its contribution to GDP and export earnings is substantial, accounting for 26% of Rwanda’s GDP value added in 2020. As part of the Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme, we conducted
In the past decade, the government of Rwanda has made significant investments in the tourism sector, positioning it as a vital driver of economic development and decentralization, catering to both domestic and international visitors. As part of the Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme, we conducted a landscaping study of the tourism
In implementing the Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme, Cenfri has worked with multiple stakeholders and partners to acquire datasets to inform policy that will improve the country’s digital economy. As the programme evolves, there is a growing appetite from policy and decision-makers for Cenfri’s data analysis. Our policy associate, Charles Semapondo,
Rwanda must be cashless by 2024 – that’s the bold target set in the National Payment System Strategy 2018-2024. This policy has strong empirical backing, with a whole range of literature that documents the benefits of digital financial services. Moving from cash to digital payments saves people travel and time
Ghana’s tourism industry presents an exciting landscape for growth, offering significant potential for youth employment and entrepreneurship. However, an effective digital presence is a prerequisite for competitiveness in the global tourism sector and in Ghana, digital technology adoption among tourism operators remains nascent. Data and digital technology increasingly enable tourism
Almost half of Sub-Saharan Africa’s trade every year – USD 362 billion of merchandise trade – settles in US dollars, despite the US accounting for less than 10 percent of Africa’s total trade in 2019. We believe that informal trade is even more dollar-based. This begs the question: what drives
If properly catalogued, classified and shared, public sector data can be leveraged to increase access to services, make service delivery more efficient and inform policymaking. Real-time data on traffic and urbanisation can inform urban planning efforts including mobility, energy and water consumption, for example. Combining machine learning techniques with access
In recent years, Rwanda has embarked on a transformative journey towards digitalisation to fuel economic growth and innovation. The Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme, implemented by Cenfri in partnership with the Ministry of ICT and Innovation and the Mastercard Foundation, is contributing to this journey. Our focus is predominantly on extracting
Open Finance can be defined as the sharing of consumer data between financial service providers (FSPs) and/or third-party providers on the basis of consumer consent. Improved use of data and effective data sharing can support a better functioning market by facilitating greater competition and enabling innovation within the financial sector.
Education is of fundamental importance to Rwanda’s economy; and the country has high policy priorities in providing access across the country. Primary and secondary education are free but there are other costs such as contributions to the school feeding programmes, books, etc. The education sector faces various challenges including low
Agriculture is the largest sector in the Rwandan economy, with 75% of the adult population generating their livelihoods from the sector. Its contribution to GDP and export earnings is substantial, accounting for 26% of Rwanda’s GDP value added in 2020. As part of the Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme, we conducted
In the past decade, the government of Rwanda has made significant investments in the tourism sector, positioning it as a vital driver of economic development and decentralization, catering to both domestic and international visitors. As part of the Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme, we conducted a landscaping study of the tourism
In implementing the Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme, Cenfri has worked with multiple stakeholders and partners to acquire datasets to inform policy that will improve the country’s digital economy. As the programme evolves, there is a growing appetite from policy and decision-makers for Cenfri’s data analysis. Our policy associate, Charles Semapondo,
Rwanda must be cashless by 2024 – that’s the bold target set in the National Payment System Strategy 2018-2024. This policy has strong empirical backing, with a whole range of literature that documents the benefits of digital financial services. Moving from cash to digital payments saves people travel and time
Ghana’s tourism industry presents an exciting landscape for growth, offering significant potential for youth employment and entrepreneurship. However, an effective digital presence is a prerequisite for competitiveness in the global tourism sector and in Ghana, digital technology adoption among tourism operators remains nascent. Data and digital technology increasingly enable tourism
Almost half of Sub-Saharan Africa’s trade every year – USD 362 billion of merchandise trade – settles in US dollars, despite the US accounting for less than 10 percent of Africa’s total trade in 2019. We believe that informal trade is even more dollar-based. This begs the question: what drives
If properly catalogued, classified and shared, public sector data can be leveraged to increase access to services, make service delivery more efficient and inform policymaking. Real-time data on traffic and urbanisation can inform urban planning efforts including mobility, energy and water consumption, for example. Combining machine learning techniques with access
In recent years, Rwanda has embarked on a transformative journey towards digitalisation to fuel economic growth and innovation. The Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme, implemented by Cenfri in partnership with the Ministry of ICT and Innovation and the Mastercard Foundation, is contributing to this journey. Our focus is predominantly on extracting
