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In accordance with the Prime Minister’s Order No. 26/03 of 23 October 2008, imports of certain chemicals and pollutants are prohibited, while Law No. 57/2008 of 10 September 2008 prohibits importation of polythene bags, although, in exceptional cases, any person needing to manufacture, use, import, and sell polythene bags may apply and obtain written authorization from the Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA)

Permission from the Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA) is required to import, inter alia, ozone-layer-depleting substances, and products and equipment containing such substances (Ministerial Order No. 006/2008), while relevant legislation on import restrictions includes the Organic Law No.04/2005 of 8 April 2005 determining the modalities of protection, conservation, and promotion of the environment; the Ministerial Order No.007/2008 of 15 August 2008 establishing the list of protected animal and plant species; the Ministerial Order No.003/16.01 of 15 July 2010 preventing activities that pollute the atmosphere; and the Ministerial Order No.004/16.01 of 15 July 2010 governing the importation and exportation of wild animals

Technical regulations may be developed and administered by the ministries responsible for instance for environment and a number of regulatory bodies such as the Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA), for projects and products that may cause environmental degradation, while under the Rwanda Bureau of Standards (RBS) Instruction No. 01/2004 imports of selected products and materials of high risk to consumers and the environment require a batch certificate from the RBS, attesting that a particular consignment or shipment conforms to the specified Rwanda standards, or international or foreign standard recognized by the RBS

In the context of environmental protection, Rwanda has ratified a number of conventions, including the Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol; the Convention to Combat Desertification; the Convention on Biodiversity, and the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety; the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer; the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants; the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure; the Basel Convention on the Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal; the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands; and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)

Special economic zones (SEZs) users must submit a business plan, architectural designs based on a SEZ design, and an environmental impact assessment report, while some economic activities, such as the manufacturing and sale of chemicals and other prohibited pollutants and manufacturing and sale of ozone layer depleting substances and equipment containing such substances, are not permitted in a SEZ

Under Article 289 of the Law, the protection of discovery of plants, genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore is to be granted by a related special law, which is under preparation

The Government has been applying various measures, including the Land Husbandry, Water Harvesting and Hillside Irrigation (LWH) programme, which uses a comprehensive watershed approach to prevent soil erosion and improve productivity of hillsides

The Government considers that the horticulture subsector can develop through value addition and diversification, such as focusing on organic and value-added products including juices and dried fruits/chillies, while control of maximum residue levels for pesticides and other toxic elements is to be undertaken once the equipment is available at the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB) laboratory and the Government is considering projects to conserve rain water for use during the dry periods

The forestry sector, plays a key role in supporting the livelihood of all Rwandans by providing most of the energy consume, preventing soil erosion, protecting water, and supplying ecological services, and is regulated by the Ministry of Natural Resources (MINIRENA) in charge of, inter alia, encouraging private-sector investment in forestry to reduce poverty, creating employment and improve livelihoods, through sustainable use, conservation, and management of forests and trees; contributing to sustainable land use through soil, water, and biodiversity conservation, and tree planting; and promoting farm forestry to produce timber, wood fuel and other forest products

The MINIRENA (Ministry of Natural Resources) Mining Policy, and the OGMR (Geology and Mining Authority) strategic plan for 2010-2013 provide a roadmap, focused on developing a sustainable mining, while Rwanda's National Energy Policy and National Energy Strategy 2008-2012 for the energy sector aims at improving the standard of living of the Rwanda people in a sustainable and environmentally sound manner, by ensuring reliable and affordable domestic energy production from several sources including hydro-electricity, methane gas, solar power, biomass and petroleum; encouraging rational and efficient use of energy; and establishing environmentally sound and sustainable systems of energy production, procurement, transportation, distribution, and end-use