The Rwanda Food and Drugs Authority (Rwanda FDA) has announced the closure of 27 additional manufacturers of alcoholic beverages and revoked their production licenses as part of efforts to protect public health and safety. These bring the total number of suspended manufacturers to 136, following the recent closure of 109 others.
The decision was announced in a statement issued by Rwanda FDA on August 4, 2026, ordering the immediate suspension of all advertising related to the affected alcoholic beverages and the removal of all promotional billboards across the country.
Products Ordered Off the Market
In the statement, Rwanda FDA said, “All alcoholic beverages produced by the affected manufacturers must be immediately withdrawn from the market. Manufacturers are required to begin the recall as soon as they receive this notice.”
The authority also instructed the owners of the affected factories to immediately notify distributors to collect the products from wholesalers and retailers and return all remaining stock, including products recovered from the market, to their production facilities.
Manufacturers have been directed to submit a report on the product recall to Rwanda FDA within three working days from August 4, 2026.
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Directives to Distributors and Retailers
The agency further ordered distributors and retailers to immediately stop distributing and selling beverages produced by the suspended manufacturers and return all remaining stock to their suppliers, whether distributors or producers.
Rwanda FDA warned that failure to comply with these directives would result in further legal and regulatory action.
Public Warning and Health Concerns
The authority also urged consumers to stop drinking the affected beverages and reiterated that all promotional activities related to the suspended alcoholic drinks must cease immediately.
The move comes as Rwanda continues to battle the circulation of substandard alcoholic beverages, which have posed a serious threat to public health and claimed numerous lives.
Over the past seven months, the contaminated beverages have reportedly killed about 50 people and affected another 100, with some victims suffering permanent blindness.
