Opinion: Rwanda, The Hope for Africa

What crosses your mind anytime you hear of Rwanda? For me, until a few weeks ago, it had always been the genocide and civil war. Therefore, when I had a business opportunity to visit Rwanda, almost all close relations who knew I was going to Rwanda feared for me. Even at the boarding gate, the attendant asked if I was a security personnel going on a peace keeping mission in Rwanda.

Rwanda, presently is far from the perception that the rest of the world holds of it. It is by far the cleanest country I have ever visited and has the most disciplined citizens in Africa. The following observations I made which I’m going to share with you just might blow your mind. Mind you, I am not exaggerating in any way and those who have been to this rising African country can bear me out.

• Could you imagine a Ghana without rubbish and litter on the streets across the nation? That is what Rwanda has.
• Could you imagine a Ghana without choked gutters filled with polythene and solid waste? That is what Rwanda has. They have banned polythene bags in the country and hence there is nothing like sachet water, etc. They even go to the extent of having their Customs and Immigration personnel search and remove any polythene bag you might have in your possession if they see any evidence of it in your luggage upon entry into the country. The country is so  clean that you have to wonder if they’re really human like us here in Ghana.
• Could you imagine Ghana without hawkers on our streets and pedestrian walkways? That is what Rwanda has.
• Could you imagine a Ghana with no potholes on our roads? That is what Rwanda has across the nation.
• Could you imagine a market place in Ghana as clean as  a whistle? That is what Rwanda has.
• Could you imagine a Ghana with less talk but a more action-oriented approach? That is what Rwanda has.
• Could you imagine a Ghana where we can speak and transact business in both English and French fluently? That is what Rwanda has.
• Could you imagine a Ghana where on one Saturday in each month, the nation takes part in communal labour to rid their streets, gutters and communities of rubbish, etc? That is what Rwanda does.

There is no rubbish in Rwanda like we have littered on our roads and choking our gutters. Mind you, they also have open gutters like we do here in Ghana. Polythene bags are banned in Rwanda, I mean you will not see polythene in any shape or form anywhere on the streets of Kigali and its other provinces. There are no street hawkers in Rwanda and there is no pedestrian shopping centre even in the business district of the country. Everyone is expected to enter a shop to buy whatever they need.

There are also a lot of motor bikes serving as a means of transportation but never did I come across any cyclist and passenger without a helmet. In our dear country Ghana, people sit on motor-bikes and refuse to wear helmets, completely disregarding the fatal consequences this might have were they to be involved in an accident.

The problem with our dear country is that the laws are in our law-books but we refuse to enforce them. One old woman I once met at our domestic departure hall said the only law that we obey in Ghana is the public washroom signs (Male / Female).

Rwanda is really the heart of Africa, based on their location on the African continent. They are poised for greater things. A  group of disciplined and law-abiding citizens is equivalent to a future of greater works and transformation. Rwanda gives me hope for this continent. The genocide could have been a curse but it rather served as a blessing to this nation.

They had a new beginning which they are not taking for granted at all. A youthful generation is fully in the helm of affairs in this country and they’re making strides that we in Ghana here can only pay lip-service to.

They have seen the worst and do not take anything for granted like we do here in Ghana. Our problem in this country is that we don’t have any problems, and therefore create a lot of hullabaloo about inconsequential things that happen in our society. If like Nigeria, we had Boko Haram to worry about and had to always look over our shoulders for when the next disaster would occur, we would buckle down and find solutions to the many ills that plague us.

If we could emulate this country and adopt a lot of their practices, we would be the better for it and have a lot of things to boast of. They have gotten over their sordid past and are trying very hard to move in the right direction in order to make their country better. Enough food for thought.

Kofi B

UM– USEKE.RW