Best Volume 2:Background & Analysis (Biomass Energy Strategy)
The Biomass Energy Strategy (BEST) that is described in this report is developed in the framework of the EUEI Partnership Dialogue Facility on request of the Government of Rwanda. The strategy mainly addresses charcoal supply sustainability issues, simply because
charcoal is the main urban fuel for which not many acceptable alternatives exist. Rural biomass energy issues have now been included as well.
Two workshops were held, on April 30 and September 18, 2008. The first workshop was organized to discuss the main approach to the proposed strategy, to see whether there would be consensus among the participating agencies and organizations, and the second more to
discuss and validate the results. The Minister in charge of Energy participated in both
workshops and the Minister in charge of Natural Resources participated in the last workshop.
Comments made by the various participants have been incorporated in the report. In
addition, a meeting was held with district officials dealing with wood energy of the six
districts that provide most of the wood, to discuss regulatory issues.
Finally, in January 2009 MININFRA carried out a rural energy survey among 3000 randomly
selected households, 100 in each district. The results of this survey are analyzed and used to
include the most important rural biomass energy issues.
