In a bid to address the issue of environmentally harmful cooking fuels, the Government of Rwanda plans to begin using Methane Gas from Lake Kivu by the year 2027, as announced by the Minister of Environment, Dr. Uwamariya Valentine, on June 3, 2025.
This initiative is one of the key strategies the country has set to protect the environment and reduce the use of firewood and charcoal, which continue to destroy forests and increase air pollution. Notably, 93% of Rwandan households still use firewood and charcoal, posing a serious threat to both the environment and human health.
Dr. Uwamariya explained that the ongoing research on Methane Gas is at an advanced stage, and once completed, this gas will significantly benefit institutions with high fuel needs, including schools, industries, and security agencies. She said: “We will be able to solve the fuel problem in schools and other institutions that use fuels harmful to the environment, which also come with the high cost of gas.”
Methane Gas will provide a sustainable solution to the use of charcoal and firewood, especially in urban areas where 51% of households use charcoal and 23% use gas. In rural areas, the situation is even more severe, with 93% of households still cooking with firewood.
Transforming Methane Gas from Lake Kivu into cooking gas will help reduce the cost of imported gas and protect against fluctuations in the dollar exchange rate, which directly affects fuel prices.
Senators from the Committee on Economic Development and Finance expressed concerns about the high consumption of firewood in industries, schools, and other sectors, which continues to threaten forests and the environment at large. Senator Mureshyankwano Marie Rose said: “Places with large gatherings such as police, military institutions, schools, and industries consume a lot of firewood.”
She called for sustainable mechanisms to help Rwandans access environmentally friendly fuels, including safe and efficient cookstoves.
According to data from the EICV7 Survey (2023/2024), only 5.4% of households in the country use gas or biogas, although this is an improvement from 1% in 2017. This shows that there is still a long way to go in reducing environmental degradation caused by traditional fuels.
To achieve this goal, the Ministry of Environment states that research is ongoing on how to convert Methane Gas from Lake Kivu into cooking gas, which would reduce Rwanda’s dependency on imported gas, help protect the environment, and make gas more affordable to citizens.
This 2027 initiative is not only aimed at environmental protection but also at supporting the country’s economy and safeguarding public health by providing a sustainable solution to the cooking fuel problem.
