On the April 7, 2011, I sat among tens of thousands of Rwandans who had assembled at the National Stadium in Kigali to commemorate, for the 17th time, the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis that left up to one million people dead.
At the beginning of the ceremony, the weather was overcast, sombre and harsh; forcing us to find umbrellas to protect ourselves against the rain. As the ceremony wore on, it shone so bright that we used the same umbrellas to protect ourselves from the scorching sun. This situation reminded me of the idiom, “come rain or shine”, as I reached for the umbrella, seeing that I needed it both when it shone and when it rained.
In its 2010 survey of the feelings of people in 153 countries, Gallup Poll found that 98% of Rwandans have confidence in the national army. It was the highest expression of confidence in the army of any nation in the world. How has the Rwanda Defense Forces (RDF) been able to build such high levels of citizens’ confidence in its work?
On May 9, 2011, a Rwandan choir team was visiting Tanzania when the bus they were travelling in suffered an accident in a place called Puni a few kilometers from Isaka hospital. Three people, two of them Rwandan died and several were injured. Within an hour, the Rwanda Defense Air-force had dispatched a helicopter to rescue the injured and had brought them for first class medical attention in Kigali. It arrived there even before the Tanzanian public healthcare system could send an ambulance from Isaka. Given that the Rwanda Defense Air-force had to seek permission to overfly Tanzanian airspace, this efficiency was impressive.
On 23 January 2011, President Paul Kagame inaugurated the US$5.8 million ultra modern Butaro Hospital in Burera District built in partnership with the government of Rwanda, Partners in Health, and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI). The people of Burera also contributed their part. The tech savvy hospital, equipped with outstanding modern facilities and high speed internet connectivity, is located in a remote region of Rwanda near the border with Uganda.
When President Kagame visited Burera district in 2003, residents told him there was nothing they wanted more than a hospital. He promised he would deliver, and immediately began sourcing for funding and partners. In 2008, former US President Bill Clinton offered financial support and launched the construction of the hospital.
Rebuilding Rwanda after the 1994 genocide started from scratch and every sector and aspect of reconstruction was a priority.
The country had numerous challenges including but not limited to restoring security, unity and reconciliation among Rwandans.
We had to get the economy back on its feet by rebuilding schools, hospitals and other social and economic infrastructure. In addition, we had to restore the justice system and end the culture of impunity. In short, we had to start the country afresh. We had to turn swords into ploughshares.
We went through an emergency period and, in 1998, the government started to think about working towards development and putting an end to the emergency phase. The country went through a national consultative process, involving Rwandans from all walks of life, including leadership of all levels in the business community, government, academia and civil society, between 1998 and 2000.
A visit to Rwanda provided the greatest positive shock in this analyst’s professional career. If you have any doubt that an African country can emulate the best performance seen in emerging Europe or Asia over the past few decades, then a visit is required to Kigali to challenge these assumptions. From the ease of visa-free travel and a well organised and hassle-free airport, to the reassuring presence of police and security forces, streetlights, low crime, good roads and broadband (due from the end of this month), we suspect there will be much to impress you. A side trip to see the gorillas would be helpful for the country’s strong tourism revenues, too.
To be a Singapore of Africa is Rwanda’s ambition – and in our view, it is succeeding. The country is politically stable, with the next presidential elections due in 2017. There is a zero-tolerance attitude to corruption, and we heard this is effective. It is the world’s best reformer, according to the World Bank’s Doing Business survey; in 2010, 6,000 companies were registered in this country the previous five years. Keen to dispense with foreign aid by 2020, the country is a darling of the aid agencies, with highly effective implementation and use of foreign inflows. We saw clear evidence of forward planning and a strategy for the country. With access to a market of 130 million people in the East African Community (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi), Rwanda aims to be a hub for investment for both East and Central Africa. Lastly, and much to the distress of any macro strategist, we failed to find significant macro-risks for the economy.
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Supplement
On May 9, 2011, a Rwandan choir team was visiting Tanzania when the bus they were travelling in suffered an accident in a place called Puni a few kilometers from Isaka hospital. Three people, two of them Rwandan died and several were injured. Within an hour, the Rwanda Defense Air-force had dispatched a helicopter to rescue the injured and had brought them for first class medical attention in Kigali. It arrived there even before the Tanzanian public healthcare system could send an ambulance from Isaka. Given that the Rwanda Defense Air-force had to seek permission to overfly Tanzanian airspace, this efficiency was impressive.
On 23 January 2011, President Paul Kagame inaugurated the US$5.8 million ultra modern Butaro Hospital in Burera District built in partnership with the government of Rwanda, Partners in Health, and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI). The people of Burera also contributed their part. The tech savvy hospital, equipped with outstanding modern facilities and high speed internet connectivity, is located in a remote region of Rwanda near the border with Uganda.
We had to get the economy back on its feet by rebuilding schools, hospitals and other social and economic infrastructure. In addition, we had to restore the justice system and end the culture of impunity. In short, we had to start the country afresh. We had to turn swords into ploughshares.
To be a Singapore of Africa is Rwanda’s ambition – and in our view, it is succeeding. The country is politically stable, with the next presidential elections due in 2017. There is a zero-tolerance attitude to corruption, and we heard this is effective. It is the world’s best reformer, according to the World Bank’s Doing Business survey; in 2010, 6,000 companies were registered in this country the previous five years. Keen to dispense with foreign aid by 2020, the country is a darling of the aid agencies, with highly effective implementation and use of foreign inflows. We saw clear evidence of forward planning and a strategy for the country. With access to a market of 130 million people in the East African Community (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi), Rwanda aims to be a hub for investment for both East and Central Africa. Lastly, and much to the distress of any macro strategist, we failed to find significant macro-risks for the economy.
