Rusizi and Bukavu border crossings

Rusizi I and Rusizi II

Two border posts connect Rusizi District in Rwanda with Bukavu in DR Congo. KT Press and Umunota name them as Rusizi I and Rusizi II ^6,7.

TradeMark Africa describes the Ruzizi II crossing as the main heavy-truck gateway between Rusizi and Bukavu ². A 2015 environmental framework prepared for the Ministry of Trade and Industry described Rusizi I as a busy post with daily movement of vendors and traders. It said about 86 percent of those vendors were women and that there were no permanent markets at the crossing ⁵.

Rusizi II one-stop border post

On 2 June 2021 the Ministry of Infrastructure opened a National Oversight Committee meeting for the Rusizi II one-stop border post project. The ministry said the joint project cost US$20 million and was funded by the European Union with IOM and TradeMark East Africa ¹. The meeting reviewed a draft bilateral agreement, the border post design and an Integrated Border Management training manual ¹.

TradeMark Africa lists the project implementation period as 2018 to 2024. Planned outputs include warehouses, secure truck parking, ICT systems for data exchange and a structured cross-border market for small traders ². TradeMark Africa lists Rusizi II in its 2023 to 2030 strategy for Rwanda as a crossing where it aims to streamline border procedures ³.

Status: the sources opened for this page do not give a handover or opening date for the new Rusizi II facilities.

World Bank border markets and Rusizi I

Rwanda took part in the World Bank Great Lakes Region Trade Facilitation project with an IDA credit of SDR 18.7 million, about US$26 million ⁴. For Rusizi I, Rwanda's planned work was a feasibility study and detailed design, with priority works to follow ⁴. The 2015 framework listed a parking area and an automated gate system among planned improvements at Rusizi I ⁵.

The Bugarama and Nyamasheke border markets were launched in March 2022. The review reports Bugarama at full capacity in November 2023 ⁴. Under the same project, civil works at Kamembe Airport were completed in June 2022, with 3,370 passengers against a target of 92,800 ⁴.

The same review records that Rwandan agencies modified contracts early in the project without revising the procurement plan or getting World Bank clearance. COVID-19 delayed works in Rwanda ⁴.

Help desks for small traders

In 2016 COMESA announced new Trade Information Desks at Rusizi and Bukavu. Desk officers help small traders use the COMESA Simplified Trade Regime and work with immigration, customs, security officials and trader associations ⁸.

Ebola closure in May 2026

Rwanda temporarily closed the Rusizi I and Rusizi II border posts on 18 May 2026, a day after it suspended crossings in Rubavu District ⁶. Students, humanitarian workers, food transporters and returning residents could still cross under health screening ⁶. Rusizi Mayor Phanuel Sindayiheba urged residents to wash hands and limit travel, as reported by Umunota ⁷.

During the 2018 Ebola outbreak in DR Congo, the Ministry of Health named Nyarushishi in Rusizi District as one of three facilities equipped to receive Ebola cases ⁹.

A Ministry of Health notice dated 22 May 2026 reinforced health screening at land entry points along the DR Congo border. It denied entry to foreign nationals who had been in DR Congo in the 30 days before travel. Rwandan nationals and foreign residents with proof of residency who had been in DR Congo in that period face mandatory quarantine ¹⁰. The notice gives no end date ¹⁰. A Ministry of Health update of 16 June 2026 said there were no cases in Rwanda and no active cases in areas bordering Rwanda ¹¹. Neither page mentions a border reopening ^10,11.

Status: closed from 18 May 2026 ^6,7. This page could not confirm a reopening date from a source that meets the site's rules.