Formula 1

Rwanda’s plan for an African Grand Prix

A 10-year agreement sets a course for Formula 1’s return to Africa in the early 2030s, with a circuit planned near Kigali.

Steven El Rayo

Rookie and Draft scouting

Racing Racing: cars and motorcycles Rookie and Draft scouting

Formula 1 announced on October 13, 2026, that the championship plans to hold an African Grand Prix in Rwanda from the early 2030s. The agreement is for 10 years, and a new circuit is required before the race can take place.

The planned venue is in Bugesera, near the site of Kigali’s new international airport, which is due to open in early 2028. Circuit design work involves Carsten Tilke of Tilke Engineering and Alex Wurz of Wurz Designs, a former Formula 1 racer.

A race intended to represent the continent

Rwanda’s officials have presented the project as a bid to bring Formula 1 back to Africa and create a broader platform for the sport across the continent. Jean-Guy Afrika, chief executive of the Rwanda Development Board, said the choice of the name African Grand Prix was intended to make the effort inclusive and easier to present to potential partners.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame said the country viewed the project in a continental context, rather than as an initiative for Rwanda alone. The announcement also comes amid the country’s recent sporting events: Kigali hosted the FIA Awards in 2024, and Rwanda hosted the UCI Cycling World Championships in 2025, the first African nation to do so.

A circuit in the hills

The proposed circuit site is in Bugesera, in a country known as the “land of a thousand hills” because of its location within the Great Rift Valley. Wurz has been involved in the project for several years, according to Formula 1’s report.

The circuit must be developed before Rwanda can join the championship calendar. The announcement sets out an intended timeframe—early in the 2030s—but does not identify a specific race date or provide circuit details in the information supplied.

Formula 1’s previous African races

Formula 1’s account notes that two African countries have hosted a World Championship Grand Prix. Morocco’s Ain-Diab road course staged a race in 1958, while South Africa hosted 23 Grands Prix, with its final event taking place in 1993.

The Rwanda agreement therefore represents a planned return to the continent, rather than a race already on the calendar. Formula 1’s announcement described a 10-year contract, but the supplied details do not give a first-race date beyond the early-2030s timeframe.

Newsroom

The project now depends on developing the Bugesera circuit ahead of Rwanda’s planned entry to the Formula 1 calendar.

Byline

Steven El Rayo

Rookie and Draft scouting

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