KIGALI (Reuters) – Rwanda’s biggest brewer, Bralirwa Ltd, will start making Heineken beer locally next month in a move that will allow it to cut retail prices by a fifth, it said on Monday.
Bralirwa, which produces local beers like Primus, has been importing Heineken made in the Netherlands. The company said the switch to brewing Heineken locally was made possible by investments in its plant.
The beer will also be exported to neighbouring countries. These include Burundi and Democratic Republic of Congo.
The price per bottle of Heineken will drop to 800 francs ($0.9231) from 1,000 francs, once local production kicks in.
Rwanda will join Nigeria, Namibia, South Africa, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Ethiopia as local producers of Heineken in Africa.
($1 = 866.6300 Rwandan francs)
Reporting by Clement Uwingiriyimana; Writing by Duncan Miriri. Editing by Jane Merriman