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Rwanda: IRST Drafting a Bio-Diesel Policy
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The New Times (Kigali)
22 July 2008
Posted to the web 23 July 2008
Paul Karangwa and Eddie Mukaaya
Gasabo
The Institute of Scientific and Technological Research (IRST) is drafting a policy that will promote bio-diesel exploration, production and use of it in Rwanda.
The policy comes after IRST did a country study about bio-diesel production that revealed its viability in Rwanda.
Dr Jean Baptiste Nduwayezu, the Director General of IRST, said that the bio-diesel policy is in the final stage of drafting but pending stakeholders' inputs about the production and marketing concerns.
"Once these are added into the draft, it will be forwarded to the government for consideration, and hopefully, it will be passed to see biodiesel produced in Rwanda," he explained.
While speaking to stakeholders in a meeting held on Thursday, at Novotel Umbano, Dr Nduwayezu explained that bio-diesel production was necessary since fossil fuel prices are escalating every now and then.
He continued that bio-diesel use has immense advantages over fossil fuel that could bring about an improvement in social, economic and environmental conditions in Rwanda.
He cited halting deforestation and desertification, non-toxicity and above all cost efficiency as some of the examples.
Doctor Hamimu Hongo, an attendant from Tanzania, who provided a bio-diesel case study, said it is the only answer to address the fuel crisis in the world today.
He explained that though bio-diesel had aroused concerns over its production using cereals, research has provided alternatives in Moringa Olerifera Lam tree, jatropha trees, Avocadoes, among others.
Prof Romain Murenzi, the minister in the office of the president in charge of technology, too acknowledged the importance of bio-diesel to socio-economic development.
"Establishment of a bio-fuel industry in Rwanda is therefore in the best interests of Rwanda and the rest of Africa," he explained.
Prof Murenzi added, "We are therefore positive about the potentials of the market and will continue investing towards the creation of a viable bio-fuel market."
The meeting ended with a set of recommendations on the policies of production, sales and distribution of bio-diesel in the country.
These were to be added to the draft policy before presentation to government for consideration. Among the attendants were a number of national agencies dealing with various development aspects related to fuel production and marketing.
Not forgetting representatives from the Local Government, private sector, Civil Society, and farmers' associations.
The policy drafting came after research indicated that the country has millions of Jatropha trees, which are rich in oil that can be processed to produce diesel.
As so, Brazafric, a leading agro-machinery manufacturing company in East Africa, last year announced plans to start commercial bio-diesel production in Rwanda.
Also in November last year, Ageratec, a Swedish based company signed a "Memorandum of Understanding" with IRST in Rwanda, to promote bio-diesel production, quality control and environmental implications.
IRST bought a biodiesel processor from Ageratec for research and developmental purposes. Ageratec also offered training to four IRST staff about bio-diesel processing.
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Bio-diesel is a fuel alternative of the conventional petroleum based diesel engine fuel, which is manufactured from vegetable oils or animal fats by catalytically reacting these with a short-chain aliphatic alcohol (methanol or ethanol), typically using a process called transesterification, or alcoholysis.
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