The ministry of environment in collaboration with partners, has launched the Rwanda Cooling Green On-Wage Mechanism – an initiative to give consumers access to financing allowing them to buy efficient cooling equipment.
“The launch of the Rwanda Cooling Green On-Wage Financing Mechanism is part of the Government of Rwanda’s commitment to tackle one of the world’s crises – climate change – which threatens food security, health & economic well-being as well as our environment,” said Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya, the Minister of Environment.
Mujawamariya emphasized the importance of the initiative towards achieving the provisions of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol.
She said that the launch coincided with the 3rd anniversary of the enforcement of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which was adopted in Kigali in 2016, and reiterated the commitment of the government of Rwanda to implement it.
“To implement the amendment, the government of Rwanda quickly acted by putting in place the National Cooling Strategy in 2019. The Green On-wage mechanism is a practical example of how the government is implementing the strategy,” she said.
The Rwanda Cooling GO mechanism has collaborated with Bank of Kigali (BK) and GT bank
Rwanda Plc as partner banks; with Hotpoint Ltd, Akagera Business Group, Alien Technologies and Denmar Ltd as partner vendors.
Speaking on behalf of the Rwanda Bankers’ Association (RBA), which she represented, and the Bank of Kigali, the banking institution she leads, Dr. Diane Karusisi commended the Ministry of Environment and partners for keeping Rwanda on the frontline in the fight against climate change, pledging the commitment of banks to play their part.
“Global warming is a real threat to our planet, it should be everyone’s responsibility to fight it. Not just the experts,” she said.
The Rwanda Cooling Green On-Wage provides loans to households to reduce their energy consumption and improve household incomes through the adoption of efficient refrigeration and air-conditioning systems. It will also support Rwanda’s Climate efforts.
The Initiative aims to transition the market to environmentally friendly and energy efficient cooling technologies.
