Rwandan lawmakers have endorsed plans to give more powers to the president to create and disband public institutions and state-owned companies as the country seeks to improve efficiency and minimise waste.
While currently, parliament determines establishment and dissolution of public institutions, Article 4 of a draft law, establishing provisions governing public institutions, says establishment and dissolution of a public institution will be determined by a presidential order.
The Auditor-General noted that some institutions — particularly public utilities including Rwanda Energy Group (REG) and the Water and Sanitation Authority (Wasac) — have habitually mismanaged state resources.
MPs who voted for the Bill say they were compelled by the "abnormally long procedures" required to establish public institutions, yet important strategies like the like National Strategy for Transformation require “accelerated implementation by public institutions.”
Frank Habineza, the Green Party MP who voted against the Bill, said that “it is not right to concentrate all powers in one arm of government.
