Downtown Kigali was teeming with people doing last minute shopping on Christmas eve. Photos/Eric Ruzindana/KT.
Shoppers in Kigali flocked markets and shops in the central business district of Kigali, Tuesday, in preparation for Christmas day, December 25, as traders cashed in on what appeared to be last minute purchases, amid reports of hiked prices of some commodities.
Clothes, shoes, decorations, home appliances, foods and beverages were the most sought after goods as Rwandans got busy on Christmas eve, as shopping centres such as CHIC, T2000, Quartier Commercial, Quartier Matheus, Nyarugenge market and downtown Nyabugogo teemed with people buying Christmas goods.
In Nyabugogo, Remera, Kimironko and other shopping hotspots, prices of meat were reportedly hiked, from Rwf5,000 to Rwf6,500 in some places, while prices of food stuffs such as potatoes, bananas and fresh vegetables were slightly hiked due to high demand, as traders looked to make the most of the festive season sales.
“At first we feared customers were not coming, but from Monday and Tuesday, we have seen more buyers coming, perhaps because most people, especially workers, were paid as the week began,” said Daniel Ndizigiye, an electronics dealer in town.
Similarly, there was a shortage of buses on Christmas eve as last minute travelers headed upcountry to celebrate the festive season with their loved ones.
Christmas eve was characterised by human congestion and traffic jam as people hit town to make Christmas purchases.
As a tradition, some Rwandans prefer to travel to their villages for Christmas, to celebrate it with their parents and relatives. To ease travel challenges, the City of Kigali City set up temporary bus stations where people can get buses to their respective destinations, to avoid congestion in the usual bus parks.
People travelling to the Southern Province districts of Kamonyi, Muhanga, Ruhango, Nyanza, Nyaruguru, Gisagara and Huye, as well as Western Province districts of Nyamasheke, Karongi, Ngororero, Rusizi, Rutsiro and Nyaruguru, were redirected to Kigali Pelé Stadium, in Nyamirambo while a temporary bus station was set up in Kabuga for people traveling to the Eastern Province.
People travelling to the Northern Province districts of Gicumbi, Rulindo, Musanze, Burera, Gakenke and Nyabihu, as well as those traveling to Rubavu in Western Province boarded their buses in Nyabugogo.
However, in Nyamirambo and Nyabugogo, travelers had to wait longer hours due to a shortage of buses. Dieudonne Nizeyumukiza, who was travelling to Rubavu, said that he waited for nearly six hours to get a bus, despite arriving in Nyabugogo at 6am.
“When I got here, they said all the buses had been booked, the nearest available bus was scheduled to leave at 11am,” he said, adding that there was an unusually huge number of people who appeared stranded as they waited for buses to ferry them to their upcountry destinations.
