Average Import and Export Clerk Salary in Rwanda for 2026
An import and export clerk in Rwanda earns about 2,724,700 RWF a year. That's 67% below the national average of 8,305,400 RWF.
Pay ranges widely from country to country and from role to role. The lowest reported salaries in Rwanda sit around 1,249,900 RWF a year, while the very top stretches to 4,320,200 RWF. Everything on this page is in Rwandan franc (RWF, symbol Fr), which lets you compare numbers like-for-like without worrying about exchange rates.
The numbers here are pulled together from official government wage data, large independent salary surveys, and aggregated worker-reported pay. Most reported salaries include the benefits that are common in Rwanda, such as housing or transport allowances, which is worth keeping in mind if you're comparing against a country where those are usually paid on top.
How much does an import and export clerk make in Rwanda?
A typical import and export clerk working in Rwanda brings home around 227,058 RWF a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 1,249,900 RWF, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 4,320,200 RWF for the most experienced and specialised people in the role.
The wide gap between low end and top end reflects how much pay can vary inside the same job title. A junior import and export clerk working at a small local employer earns very different money from a senior at a multinational. Skills, employer, city and years in the seat all push the number around.
How import and export clerk pay ranges in Rwanda
A good way to think about salary in Rwanda is to look at the distribution rather than the headline average. Half of all import and export clerks in Rwanda earn less than 2,941,000 RWF a year, and the other half earn more. That middle number is the median, and it is usually more useful than the average for answering "is my pay normal here".
Looking at the quartiles fills in the picture. A quarter of earners take home less than 1,882,700 RWF (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 3,925,200 RWF (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of import and export clerks sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.
The very lowest reported salaries sit around 1,249,900 RWF. The highest stretch to 4,320,200 RWF, though only a small fraction of earners ever reach that level. If you are deciding whether your own offer or current pay is reasonable, work out which of those four bands you would fall into and use that as your reference point.
Import and export clerk pay by experience in Rwanda
Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for an import and export clerk in Rwanda, ahead of education and almost any other single factor. The longer you have been in the role, the more your employer can trust you to handle complexity, mentor others and act independently, all of which command higher pay. The chart below shows how the typical import and export clerk salary changes as you move through the career ladder.
- 0-2 Years1,417,600 RWF
- 2-5 Years+34% from previous1,896,700 RWF
- 5-10 Years+48% from previous2,807,200 RWF
- 10-15 Years+22% from previous3,421,600 RWF
- 15-20 Years+9% from previous3,718,600 RWF
- 20+ Years+8% from previous4,032,100 RWF
The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 48%. That is the point at which a import and export clerk typically goes from "competent in the role" to "the person other people in the team learn from", and the market pays well for that step.
Import and export clerk pay by education in Rwanda
Education sits alongside experience as one of the biggest factors driving import and export clerk pay in Rwanda. Higher qualifications consistently pull higher salaries, but the size of the gap tends to be smallest at junior levels and widens as people move up. Two people in the same role with the same years of experience but different degrees can end up earning very different money once they reach mid-career.
Below is the average import and export clerk salary in Rwanda broken down by the highest level of education a worker has completed.
- High School1,621,400 RWF
- Certificate or Diploma+57% from previous2,543,000 RWF
- Bachelor's Degree+68% from previous4,260,400 RWF
Import and export clerk gender pay gap in Rwanda
The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and Rwanda is no exception. Male import and export clerks in Rwanda earn an average of 2,868,600 RWF a year, while female import and export clerks earn around 2,566,100 RWF. That works out to a 12% gap in favour of men, even when comparing people doing the same work.
A pay gap of this size has a real long-term cost. Over a typical thirty-year career it can add up to several years of pay, and it compounds through pensions, retirement contributions and bonus-linked stock. Some of the gap is explained by women being more likely to work part-time, take career breaks, or be steered toward lower-paying specialisations. Some of it is straightforward unequal pay for the same job, which is harder to defend.
Import and Export Clerk gender pay gap
11%
Men earn this much more than women on average in Rwanda.
Pay raises for an import and export clerk in Rwanda
Most countries hand out at least some kind of pay raise every year, typically when an employee's contract is reviewed or as a cost-of-living adjustment to keep wages roughly in step with inflation. The rhythm and size of those raises varies hugely between industries.
A typical worker doing this role in Rwanda sees a raise of about 6% every 29 months, which works out to roughly 2% on an annual basis. That figure is the typical underlying rate; in years where inflation runs high you can usually expect a bit more, and in flat-economy years a bit less.
Across all jobs in Rwanda, the national average raise is around 5% every 28 months.
By industry
Industries with the highest pay raises in Rwanda:
- Banking
- Energy
- Information Technology
- Healthcare
- Travel
- Construction
- Education
By experience level
Experienced workers tend to see larger raises. Retaining a senior is cheaper than replacing them, so employers fight harder for them.
- Junior Level3% - 5%
- Mid-Career
- Senior Level
- Top Management
Import and export clerk bonus rates in Rwanda
Bonuses are the other half of total compensation, and they vary a lot between jobs and industries. Some roles are paid almost entirely in base salary; others lean heavily on bonus structures tied to revenue, project completion or company performance. Whether a job pays a bonus, how big it is, and how often it lands all factor into whether the headline salary is actually a good offer.
15% of import and export clerks in Rwanda reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes an import and export clerk a low-bonus role overall, which is useful context when you're weighing up a job offer where the base is below market.
Among those who did receive a bonus, the size of the payment varied substantially. Reported bonuses ranged from 0% to 4% of base salary. The remaining 85% of import and export clerks reported no bonus at all over the same period.
Which careers pay bonuses in Rwanda
Revenue-facing roles tend to pay the biggest bonuses. Operational and support roles tend toward smaller, more predictable ones.
- Finance
- Architecture
- Sales
- Business Development
- Marketing / Advertising
- Information Technology
- Healthcare
- Insurance
- Customer Service
- Human Resources
- Construction
- Transport
- Hospitality
Import and export clerk: public vs private sector pay
Public-sector pay in Rwanda is about 25% more than private-sector pay for similar work. The private sector typically offers stronger upside and bigger bonuses; the public sector typically offers better benefits and stability.
Public vs private pay gap
20%
Public-sector workers earn this much more than private-sector workers in Rwanda on average.
Import and export clerk salary by city in Rwanda
Import and export clerk pay is not even across Rwanda. The chart below shows the highest-paying cities in the dataset, followed by the full location table.
- Kigali
| Location | Type | Average | Median | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kigali | City | 2,878,300 RWF | 2,759,700 RWF | 1,500,800-4,403,400 RWF |
Import and Export Clerk in Rwanda: FAQs
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How much does an import and export clerk make per month in Rwanda?
An import and export clerk in Rwanda earns about 227,058 RWF a month before tax, based on an annual average of 2,724,700 RWF.
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What's the salary range for an import and export clerk in Rwanda?
Entry-level import and export clerks in Rwanda start near 1,249,900 RWF. Top-end pay reaches around 4,320,200 RWF. The middle 50% of earners sit between 1,882,700 and 3,925,200 RWF.
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Is the median import and export clerk salary in Rwanda higher or lower than the average?
The median is 2,941,000 RWF, higher than the average of 2,724,700 RWF. Half of import and export clerks in Rwanda earn below the median, half earn above it.
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What's the gender pay gap for import and export clerks in Rwanda?
Men working as an import and export clerk in Rwanda earn around 12% more than women on average (2,868,600 vs 2,566,100 RWF a year).
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Do import and export clerks in Rwanda get bonuses?
About 15% of import and export clerks in Rwanda reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 0% to 4% of base salary.
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Do import and export clerks earn more in the public or private sector in Rwanda?
In Rwanda, the public sector pays an import and export clerk about 25% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.
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How often do import and export clerks in Rwanda get a pay raise?
An import and export clerk in Rwanda sees a raise of around 6% every 29 months, equivalent to roughly 2% a year.