Assessing the Effects of COVID-19 on Access to Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene in USAID High Priority and Strategy-Aligned Countries - Rwanda Deep Dive

In May 2020, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) tasked the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Partnerships and Learning for Sustainability (WASHPaLS) project with assessing the effects of the novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) on access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services and products in USAID high priority and strategy-aligned countries. The assignment sought to characterize the current state of affairs and to forecast near-term trends (6–18 month) that could assist governments, donors and implementers prepare an informed response to the WASH-related impacts of the pandemic.

The magnitude of COVID-19’s economic shock varies widely across countries. Countries with heavy reliance on tourism and remittances suffered comparatively more, as did those countries where the government response resulted in more extensive or longer-duration movement restrictions that took larger tolls on economic activity. For the full analysis that combines results of the seven deep dives with the econometric analysis, we direct readers to the WASHPaLS COVID-19 WASH Synthesis Report. This report presents the detailed findings of the deep dive for Rwanda.