SBL hosts Rwanda's Ambassador

His Excellency Emmanuel Hategeka, Rwanda’s Ambassador to South Africa, spoke on the past, present and future of Rwanda at Unisa’s Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL) on Thursday 21 November 2024. The event was titled "From crisis to prosperity: the story of Rwanda" and formed part of the SBL Leadership in Action thought leadership series.

His Excellency Emmanuel Hategeka, Rwanda’s Ambassador to South Africa

Setting the scene

The programme director, Prof Motsamai Molefe, set things in motion by quoting from the song "My African dream" by Vicky Sampson, a South African favourite. He then handed over to the guest of honour, Ambassador Hategeka, who promptly proposed that the title of the session be revised from "From crisis to prosperity …" to "From crisis to the turnaround of a nation", explaining that he could not as yet state that Rwanda has achieved prosperity, but rather that the country is in a turnaround stage towards prosperity. With that foundation having been laid, what followed was a consummate lesson on the history of a country that has positioned itself as a "proof of concept" country located at the very centre of the African continent.

Prof Motsamai Molefe, Lukanyo Neer, Prof Thenjiwe Meyiwa, Ambassador Emmanuel Hategeka, Dr Kennedy Dakile, Prof Pumela Msweli and Dr Simo Lushaba

Rwanda is a landlocked country located in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa and bordered by Burundi to the south, Tanzania to the east, Uganda to the north and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to the west. In his eloquent way, Ambassador Hategeka proposed to revise the term "landlocked" to "landlinked". The reasoning behind this description is that although it has a population of only 14 million, Rwanda, serves a de facto population of 80 million because large populations of its neighbouring countries are located closer to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, than they are to the capital cities of their countries. This results in them opting to do business and access basic services in Rwanda. Rwanda takes an accommodative stance on this and therefore endeavours to make doing business as seamless and easy as possible. A highlight of this innovative outlook is that while it may take anything from five days to five weeks to register a company with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPS) in South Africa, it only takes three hours to register a company in Rwanda!

Rwanda’s first crisis

These innovations, while praiseworthy, have come at a devastating price for Rwanda. The Ambassador took the audience through three major crises that scar the history of Rwanda. The first crisis was colonisation. In 1894, when Germany arrived to colonise Rwanda, they found a united nation with a centralised monarchy that had been under a succession of kings since the late 13^th century. Three major societal groups, the Tutsi, Hutu and Twa, lived in harmony and had one shared culture and one language. After World War I, the country was colonised by Belgium, and its landscape changed not just geographically with the ceding of part of its territory to modern-day Uganda and the DRC but also in deeper, more insidious ways in the way its people’s reality started to change. The Ambassador expanded on how these changes brought about the second crisis that wounded Rwanda’s history.

The second crisis

With colonisation came the application of a tried and tested colonial weapon, "divide and conquer". The colonising countries found a united, homogenous nation and immediately set about forming divisions among Rwandans. The three socially cohesive groups, the Tutsi, Hutu and Twa, were systematically divided into ethnicities based on physical features and ownership of cattle. The Hutu came out on top as the elite ethnicity in Rwanda, with the Tutsi taking on a lesser position in society and the Twa, who were forest-dwelling hunter-gatherers, basically being written out of history. The Hutu were supported by the colonisers in exerting this newfound socially superior positional power against the Tutsi. The death of King Ndahindurwa of Rwanda in 1959 heralded the first recorded instance of ethnic violence between the Hutus and Tutsis, and resulted in the killing of over 100 000 Tutsis. The second more devastating and world-renowned ethnic violence defines the third crisis in the history of Rwanda.

The third crisis

The 1994 Rwanda genocide was carried out by Hutus against Tutsis. It was precipitated by a plane crash that killed the sitting president of Rwanda, President Habyarimana Juvenal, but was conveniently narrated in explosive phrases such as "the Tutsis have killed the president". What followed next were 100 days of mass killings of Tutsis as the world watched in horror. The genocide is well documented, and the Ambassador chose to rather shift his audience’s focus to post-genocide Rwanda and the restoration of a wounded nation to the present-day poster child of a well-run African economy.

The Renaissance

Three strategic choices highlight Rwanda’s recovery: Unity, Accountability and Thinking Big. Unity has been brought about by intentional efforts at achieving reconciliation, restorative justice and a single national identity, Ndi Umunyarwanda, meaning "I am Rwandan". Accountability has been brought about by a consultative approach to governance and policymaking, aided by a national zero-tolerance stance towards corruption. Institutions serving as watchdogs have been created to prevent corruption. Another way that the nation enables accountability is the digitisation of public services to ensure transparency in all government processes. The third strategic choice, Thinking Big, is both audacious and enviable in its execution. Ambassador Hategeka explained this strategic choice as follows: "When people have no option left, their only option is to think big." This strategic choice was borne out in post-genocide Rwanda’s imperative to rebuild the nation almost from scratch. These three strategic imperatives have brought about a country that is now known not by the events of 1994 but by having one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, clocking a double-digit GDP growth rate year on year. It has also become known as a "proof of concept" for good governance; safety and security; cleanliness – which is supported by the Umuganda community service that is expected from every citizen on the last Saturday of every month; a successful national airline, RwandAir; an efficient health system that has seen the eradication of many diseases, including HIV, which now sits at an enviable 3% infection rate; and a reduction in poverty through admirable initiatives such as the Girinka programme or One Cow Per Poor Family programme.

The panel, consisting of Prof Motsamai Molefe (moderator), Lukanyo Neer, Ambassador Emmanuel Hategeka, Prof Pumela Msweli and Dr Simo Lushaba

Panel discussion

The masterclass on Rwanda delivered by His Excellency the Ambassador was followed by a panel discussion. The highly knowledgeable panel was made up of Prof Pumela Msweli, CEO and Executive Dean of the SBL, Dr Simo Lushaba, Governance Specialist at the Institute of Directors South Africa (IODSA), Lukanyo Neer from the Thabo Mbeki Foundation and His Excellency, Ambassador Emmanuel Hategeka. The panel discussion was moderated by Prof Motsamai Molefe, who expertly curated the robust discussions and managed the question-and-answer session that followed. Msweli shared the view that higher education curricula need to prioritise business education, with institutions actively assisting in business incubation and acceleration. She also emphasised the importance of allowing creativity the space to exist so that innovation can thrive. Lushaba spoke eloquently about the importance of understanding that people give leaders power for the benefit of the powerless, not for the benefit of the leaders. He also reminded the audience that when reimagining the future, there is no need for multiple visions. Neer, in addressing the question of how other nations can replicate Rwanda’s success, spoke of the importance of ethical leadership, the commitment to compounding growth over a period of time, and consistency from one leader to the next. He also praised Rwanda for its commitment to growing young leaders. Ambassador Hategeka gave powerful closing remarks, reminding the audience that transformation must first occur inwardly, both for individuals and for nations. He quoted a popular Rwandese saying, "outside help will come after the rains", meaning that nations must not wait for external assistance because, like the rain, it is not always known when it will come. This outlook is what has spurred Rwanda to its incredible turnaround and continued growth trajectory.

To close of this inspirational evening, Prof Thenjiwe Meyiwa, Vice-Principal for Research, Postgraduate Studies, Innovation and Commercialisation, called for continued leadership and collaboration. She also planted an exciting idea: the establishment of an SBL campus in Kigali, Rwanda!

* Compiled by Thami Kaunda, Communications Specialist, Unisa SBL