Rwanda Aims to Train 230 Nuclear Specialists by 2028
Rwanda plans to build a workforce of over 230 nuclear energy specialists by 2028. This goal is outlined in the published Nuclear Industrial Localization Roadmap and is intended to provide personnel for future power generation facilities, as well as for regulatory and safety bodies.
Currently, only 30–50 experts are employed at the country's relevant institutions. This gap must be bridged across a wide range of areas.
According to the roadmap’s authors, some of the required competencies will take 10–15 years to reach full maturity. This means that the current student intake is not merely an educational initiative but a critical infrastructure component; without it, launching the reactor in the early 2030s would be impossible. Previously, Fidel Ndahayo, the Chief Executive Officer of the Rwanda Atomic Energy Board, estimated that the first power unit would require a staff of 234 during the initial operational phase.
The University of Rwanda, in collaboration with RAEB, has launched a four-year Bachelor of Science program in Nuclear Science and Technology; the first cohort for the 2025/26 academic year consisted of 52 students. However, the roadmap explicitly states that a bachelor's degree is insufficient — master's and doctoral programs will also be required.
Rwanda has been cooperating with Rosatom in the field of nuclear education since 2018. More than 200 Rwandan students are studying at Russian universities. In June 2026, the parties held the first meeting of the Joint Coordination Committee in Moscow and approved a roadmap for the small modular reactor (SMR) project. An agreement was signed in 2019 to establish a Center for Nuclear Science and Technology (CNST) featuring a 10 MW research reactor.
Workforce training is proceeding in parallel with institutional development: the RAEB was established in 2020, a university program has been launched, and a coordination committee with Rosatom is in operation. The target is to commission the first SMR between 2030 and 2032.
#Rwanda #NuclearEnergy #Africa
Rwanda plans to build a workforce of over 230 nuclear energy specialists by 2028. This goal is outlined in the published Nuclear Industrial Localization Roadmap and is intended to provide personnel for future power generation facilities, as well as for regulatory and safety bodies.
Currently, only 30–50 experts are employed at the country's relevant institutions. This gap must be bridged across a wide range of areas.
According to the roadmap’s authors, some of the required competencies will take 10–15 years to reach full maturity. This means that the current student intake is not merely an educational initiative but a critical infrastructure component; without it, launching the reactor in the early 2030s would be impossible. Previously, Fidel Ndahayo, the Chief Executive Officer of the Rwanda Atomic Energy Board, estimated that the first power unit would require a staff of 234 during the initial operational phase.
The University of Rwanda, in collaboration with RAEB, has launched a four-year Bachelor of Science program in Nuclear Science and Technology; the first cohort for the 2025/26 academic year consisted of 52 students. However, the roadmap explicitly states that a bachelor's degree is insufficient — master's and doctoral programs will also be required.
Rwanda has been cooperating with Rosatom in the field of nuclear education since 2018. More than 200 Rwandan students are studying at Russian universities. In June 2026, the parties held the first meeting of the Joint Coordination Committee in Moscow and approved a roadmap for the small modular reactor (SMR) project. An agreement was signed in 2019 to establish a Center for Nuclear Science and Technology (CNST) featuring a 10 MW research reactor.
Workforce training is proceeding in parallel with institutional development: the RAEB was established in 2020, a university program has been launched, and a coordination committee with Rosatom is in operation. The target is to commission the first SMR between 2030 and 2032.
#Rwanda #NuclearEnergy #Africa