The Rwanda Development Board (RDB) is moving to centralise information from customer interactions, including phone calls, emails, complaints and consultations, as part of efforts to measure service delivery and resolve problems before they cause delays for businesses and citizens.
RDB Chief Executive Officer Jean-Guy Afrika said the institution currently handles more than 500 files involving registered businesses and clients seeking consultations on matters such as starting and operating businesses in Rwanda.
Beyond those documented cases, RDB employees also receive and make more than one million phone calls involving people seeking information or services from the institution.
Afrika said bringing these interactions into a centralised system would allow RDB to better understand the volume and nature of issues raised by clients and track how effectively they are addressed.
The system is expected to bring together customer interactions through different channels, including calls, emails and physical service points.
RDB also plans to introduce mechanisms that would allow clients to give immediate feedback on the service they receive, including through simple digital responses.
The aim is to enable the institution to identify complaints and service failures quickly, rather than waiting for problems to escalate or affect business operations.
“Customer service is not simply about observing a particular week. It is about creating an experience that builds confidence in our institutions, businesses and country,” Afrika said.
He said customer service should instead be treated as a continuous responsibility, with institutions expected to provide clear information about requirements, timelines and any changes affecting a service.
The CEO cited logistics as an example, saying customers should be informed promptly when delays occur rather than being left without information.
“If circumstances change and there is a delay, the customer should be informed promptly,” he said.
According to Afrika, the proposed system would also help RDB measure how many complaints are received, what issues are most common, which channels clients use to seek assistance and how quickly cases are resolved.
The approach is being developed as RDB reactivates the Na Yombi customer service campaign, under the theme “Let’s Serve an Extra Mile.”
Na Yombi was initially launched in 2012 to promote a culture of quality customer service and was later expanded through nationwide campaigns.
RDB previously said the campaign was intended to raise awareness of citizens’ rights to quality service.
The latest activation seeks to extend customer-service awareness beyond a particular customer-care week and place greater emphasis on service standards across government institutions and the private sector.
Afrika said every interaction between a service provider and a customer can influence how an organisation is perceived, and ultimately how Rwanda is perceived by investors, tourists, businesses and citizens.
“Every interaction shapes how people perceive an organisation and, collectively, how they perceive Rwanda,” he said.
The RDB chief executive said customers have legitimate expectations when they pay for a service or seek assistance from a public institution.
He argued that the size or authority of an institution should not be used as a reason to ignore complaints or concerns raised by individual customers.
The centralisation of customer-service information is therefore expected to give RDB a clearer picture of where service bottlenecks occur and provide data that can be used to improve response times.
RDB is mandated to provide services including business and investment registration, investment promotion, tourism and conservation, and other services aimed at supporting private-sector growth.
Afrika has served as RDB’s Chief Executive Officer since his appointment in January 2025.
The move toward greater use of data to monitor customer service also aligns with RDB’s broader five-year strategy, which calls for digital tools to improve service efficiency, data-driven decision-making and stronger internal accountability.
