Last year, the Rwandan government began making progress toward better serving and supporting SMEs — a sector which constitutes 98 percent of businesses in the country, The New Times reported.

In efforts to revitalize and create more sources of financial flows for small-and-medium enterprises, the government is now looking to create a partnership with private equity firms.

Livingstone Nkusi, senior development officer and Rwanda Development Board SME head, told The New Times that although reforms have been put in place, capital generation and “limited access to finance,” remains an issue.

“The reforms made last year will boost SMEs’ opportunities to do business and expand. Plans are underway to offer SMEs incentives and link the sector with financial institutions. We have also reduced the time it takes one to register a business to a few hours,” Nkusi said in the report.

The New Times noted that of 100,000 SMEs in Rwanda, only 25,000 are registered. In 2014, this number is expected to see a drastic increase.

“If small businesses can be supported to grow, it will help expand the country’s tax base and revenue,” Ben Kagarama, the Rwanda Revenue Authority Commissioner General added.

Kagarama and Connie Bwiza Sekamana —  parliamentary economic and trade standing commission chairperson — agreed that SMEs in the country could stand to boost economic activity. Sekamana was noted supporting lease loans for SMEs in addition to job creation while Kagarama favored capacity building.

In 2013, government implemented incentives like the flat tax rate which will ultimately help SMEs stabilize their financial bases.

Attributing statistics from the Private Sector Federation, The New Times reported that SMEs account for 41 percent of private sector employment and make up 97.8 percent of the entire sector.