Mobility and digital transformation: The example of Kigali in Rwanda

Since the early 2010s, the Rwandan government has been actively pursuing a policy of modernizing public transportation in the capital city of Kigali. Based on fieldwork the authors conducted in 2019, this note examines the role of digital technology in this transformation. The analysis reveals a profound overhaul of the transportation sector (prohibiting the operation of informal minibuses, modernizing the bus fleet, restructuring bus terminals, and installing bus stops), partly supported by digital tools (smart cards for ticketing, mandatory installation of electronic meters in motorcycle taxis and taxis). These changes emphasize controls on business transactions and mobilities, even going so far as to exacerbate the risk of economic or technical exclusion to certain populations.