Wednesday 26 May 2010

Rwanda Investment Forum

Last week CBC hosted the first international investment forum in Rwanda since the country joined the Commonwealth in November 2010. It was a pleasure to be back in Kigali with HE Paul Kagame and his team of Ministers who led the discussions at the Forum.

Rwanda has been a favourite destination of mine and CBC for the last 3 years and I am delighted that the Forum was a huge success. Over 300 delegates attended, nearly half of whom were made up from international investors, many visiting Rwanda for the first time. 10 Companies expressed an interest in setting up in Rwanda, including a large Indian ICT company, which will set up its Africa office in Kigali and also several proposals in Agriculture and Agri-processing.

I would like to express my personal gratitude to the British High Commissioner in Rwanda for hosting a reception for the international delegation, and to his wife for graciously preparing sushi for the guests. Another highlight of the Trip was a Commonwealth Vs Rwanda cricket match that very diplomatically resulted in a draw. Rwanda, with only 3 months membership under its belt is already acting as if it has been a member for years!

I am sure contributions and leadership of HE Paul Kagame will be very noticeable at all future commonwealth deliberations.