Rwanda plans to acquire firefighting drones and expand fire safety training as the country seeks to strengthen its response to fires that have caused deaths and substantial property losses.
SP (Rtd) Ruboneza Nkorerimana, who works in the Ministry of Interior’s Policy and Security Department, told Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA) that the government intends to acquire drones as resources become available.
Although Rwanda has firefighting equipment, including fire engines deployed in Kigali and other provinces, he said the country still needed to expand its capacity to respond effectively to emergencies.
“Considering the country’s capacity, equipment is available, although not yet at the level we would like. We have fire engines in Kigali and the provinces, but the goal is for every district to have sufficient firefighting capacity,” he said.
He added that the planned acquisition of drones would form part of efforts to strengthen firefighting operations, with further equipment purchases expected as resources increase.
The government is also expanding training to help institutions and their employees prevent fires and respond when they occur.
Since June 2026, more than 71 public institutions and over 2,880 employees have received fire safety training, according to the ministry official. The programme is expected to extend to private institutions and communities across the provinces.
The measures come as Rwanda continues to record hundreds of fires. More than 400 incidents had been reported since the beginning of 2026, according to the figures cited in the report.
One of the recent incidents that caused substantial losses was a fire at GOICO Plaza in Musanze District. The blaze destroyed goods valued at more than Rwf30 billion, while the building itself was valued at Rwf17 billion.
Figures from the Ministry of Interior show that Rwanda recorded 1,380 fires between 2020 and 2024, resulting in 28 deaths. The incidents damaged commercial buildings, workshops, vehicles and other property.
Annual figures show an upward trend in reported fires over much of the period. Rwanda recorded 136 incidents in 2020, 123 in 2021, 238 in 2022, 259 in 2023 and 362 in 2024.
The Rwanda National Police already operates firefighting equipment, including vehicles capable of reaching fires in high-rise buildings. Fire engines are stationed in different parts of the country, with three in the Eastern Province, two each in the Western and Southern provinces, and a station in Musanze in the Northern Province, in addition to those in Kigali.
The government’s stated ambition is to improve equipment and training so that districts and institutions are better prepared to prevent fires and limit damage when they occur.
