The Rwanda Development Board (RDB) today convened the inaugural ‘Young CEO Forum’ in Kigali. 

Held under the theme ‘We own the economic destiny of our country’, the forum brought together young business leaders in Rwanda, representatives from Rwanda Revenue Authority, the National Bank of Rwanda as well as Private Sector Federation to discuss business opportunities and challenges youth encounter when operating businesses in Rwanda. 

In her opening remarks to the youth present, Clare Akamanzi, the RDB Chief Executive Officer said:

“Our interaction today is an indication of the high value we place on your role as players of the private sector.

RDB is eager to continuously engage with you and that is why we have several platforms designed for this purpose such as a dedicated SME unit within RDB whose functions include facilitation of SMEs in attending local and International trade fairs, contributing  50% of the total cost towards product certification,  working in collaboration with BDF to access credit and collaboration with international Electronic-Trade Platforms like ALIBABA to ensure increased access to global markets for local products

The majority of these platforms have yielded success, and we are keen to continue building on them so that we better understand your needs and how best we can serve you”, she ended.

The Guest of Honor, the Minister of Youth, Rosemary Mbabazi, reminded the youth gathered that they have a major role to play in Rwanda’s development;

“For Rwanda to develop into a higher middle income economy as set out in the Vision 2050, we need a robust private sector which need not only be composed of big investors but also young entrepreneurs who can tap on the many available opportunities. Both locally and regionally, there are many opportunities to tap into especially in agriculture, manufacturing and in the service industry. This convening organized by RDB and other partners is another effort to ensure that young entrepreneurs are provided with the right environment and facilitation that allow growth”, she concluded.