20100809
reuters

KIGALI (Reuters) - Rwandans turned out in large numbers on Monday to vote in the country's second presidential election since the 1994 genocide, with incumbent Paul Kagame expected to win by a landslide.

Voters queued from before sunrise after a campaign in the central African nation which human rights groups said was marred by repression and violence against Kagame's critics.

Analysts said the electorate was expected to vote overwhelmingly for Kagame, partly because of the economic growth and stability he has delivered during his decade in power and also because of a crackdown on rivals and critics.

Kagame's three registered rivals are weak and linked closely to his ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), they said.

Casting his ballot in Kiyovu, a wealthy suburb of the capital Kigali, Kagame said it was not his duty to create an opposition and said his focus would be to continue nurturing growth in the land-locked country if re-elected.

"We are already on a good footing and we want to attract more investment in the country and grow our trade with the region and beyond. I want to consolidate that and continue more growth," he told reporters at the Rugunga Primary School polling station.

Rwanda's agriculture-driven economy is forecast to grow an average 6 percent annually in the medium term, according to the International Monetary Fund.

Tourism, coffee and mineral re-exports are the main earners of foreign currency although Kagame wants to transform the country into east Africa's service centre.