2012017
AFP
Rwanda's exports of goods and services increased by 31.7 percent in 2011, driven mainly by mining, tea and coffee, the Trade and Industry Ministry said Friday.

"2011 was a great year for us because the rate of our exports grew 31 percent compared with 2010," Minister Francois Kanimba said in a statement, adding that the country's economy grew 8.8 percent in the same period.

Industrial production grew 15 percent led by construction, mining and manufacturing.

The government has been working hard to curb the inflation that is hitting the region, the statement said.

As of the end of September the inflation rate was 6.6% in Rwanda compared with 28% in Uganda, 17.3% in Kenya, 16.8% in Tanzania and 11.7% in Burundi.

The minister said Rwanda is the only African country to have ratified a bilateral investment treaty with the United States that gives it an edge in attracting American investors.

Rwanda has also boosted its exports to China, a more recent market.