Accra vs Kigali

Accra leads Kigali by 1 points on the CIRA Index, 57 to 56. Accra grades better on 8 measures, Kigali on 8; the same 35 measures from public sources for both.

Scores by each organisation's criteria

• CIRA Index: Accra 57, Kigali 56
• OECD: Accra 53, Kigali 58
• UN Tourism: Accra 55, Kigali 53
• UNDRR: Accra 35, Kigali 51

Theme by theme

• Demand and seasonality: Accra 83, Kigali 58
• Economy and jobs: Accra 31, Kigali 56
• Climate and hazards: Accra 35, Kigali 55
• Water and environment: Accra 50, Kigali 50
• Community and housing: Accra 88, Kigali 50
• Access and continuity: Accra 42, Kigali 58

Where Accra is stronger

• Nights in the three busiest months: 29.1 % of annual nights (country figure) (World Economic Forum, TTDI 2026 (data: UN Tourism by United Nations World Tourism Organization), 2022, 2023 moving average). At or below 30: grade 4/4.
• Domestic share of nights: 98.3 % of nights by residents of the same country (country figure) (Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), Accommodation Unit Survey, Nov 2024–Feb 2025). At or above 45: grade 4/4.
• Largest foreign market: 11.9 % of international arrivals or nights (country figure) (Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), 2025 Tourism Report, 2025). At or below 15: grade 4/4.
• Recovery against 2019: 115.6 % of 2019 visitor nights reached in the latest full year (country figure) (Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts / Ghana Tourism Authority, 2025). At or above 110: grade 4/4.
• Green space: 20 % of the urban area that is green or tree-covered (metro figure) (OECD / SWAC - Mapping Africa Transformations (Africapolis & ESA WorldCover), 2020). Between 20 and 30: grade 2/4.
• Rent growth: 5 % change in rents over the last 12 months (region figure) (Ghana Statistical Service, Consumer Price Index (CPI) Release (August 2026), August 2025 – August 2026). Between 3 and 6: grade 3/4.
• Access redundancy: 2 independent ways in: international airport, intercity rail, port, motorway (metro figure) (Ministry of Transport, Ghana / Ghana Airports Company Limited, 2026). Between 2 and 3: grade 2/4.
• Travel advisory: 2 stricter of the US and Canadian government advisory for the country, 1 (normal precautions) to 4 (do not travel) (country figure) (US State Department and Government of Canada travel advisories, 2026-09-29). Between 1 and 2: grade 3/4.

Where Kigali is stronger

• Unemployment rate: 11.4 % of the labour force (country figure) (World Bank WDI, 2025). Between 8 and 12: grade 2/4.
• Economic diversity: 74.1 % of employment outside accommodation, food, retail and transport (country figure) (National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, 2025). Between 72 and 80: grade 3/4.
• Tropical nights: 0 nights a year with a minimum at or above 20°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). At or below 10: grade 4/4.
• Wastewater safely treated: 52.4 % of domestic wastewater safely treated (country figure) (UN Statistics Division, SDG Country Profiles (Indicator 6.3.1), 2024). Between 50 and 70: grade 1/4.
• Early warning and emergency plan: An updated city plan with public early warning for heat, flood or fire (Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) & City of Kigali, 2021–2024). Grade 3/4.
• Tourism crisis and recovery plan: A plan with named owners, operators and recovery funding (Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) & Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), 2021–2024). Grade 3/4.
• Government effectiveness: 62.7 World Bank WGI percentile rank, 0–100 (country figure) (World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025). Between 60 and 80: grade 3/4.
• Dedicated tourism funding: A dedicated source partly ring-fenced for residents, infrastructure or sustainability (Rwanda Development Board (RDB), 2024–2026). Grade 3/4.

Country context (World Economic Forum)

• Ghana: #97 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026
• Rwanda: #91 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026

Accra in full · Kigali in full

The CIRA Index ranking · City vs city · How the index works · CIRA Studio · Put your city in the pilot