Hi Tim
The blade on the left...the folding marks are as a result of repeated hammering and folding of the rough iron, which was smelted locally, to remove impurities. The pattern is random and as far as I know acid etching was not a technique used by sub-saharan blacksmiths. The blade on the right looks newer, and could have been made from imported or scrap metal. Newer productions will sometimes show traces of file marks.
You may be interested in the attached extracts from the 1911 book "The Baganda", which describes their iron-working. (the Baganda are quite close to Rwanda)
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