Immersion into a culture — into the key to transformation
Once landed in Kigali, Rwanda we are continuously asking ourselves: how is it possible to transform a country from the hell of the genocide to a clean, welcoming and booming country. First morning on Sunday, I have decided to charge myself as usual I do on business trips: I went for an early morning run. For sure, a jogging ‘umuzungu’ (white man) in the middle of the Muslim Quarter is an unusual sight. Still, if I forget the traffic for a second, there was not a single moment when I did not feel 100% secure. People are smiling and greeting, hundreds of little shops, bright mix of colors everywhere.
Since this great “kick-off” almost a week is gone — although it feels like we are here for a month. We have kicked off the project in the full team of 9 participants from WE Communication, GSK, Dow Chemical and SAP.
Already in the first hours we went into great depth with our client — who has a big dream: utilize population health data to determine the best actions in a broad network of health facilities from community workers to district hospitals. The clear vision and determination of all of the host NGOs are truly impressive. We start to slowly understand how faith in values and in a better future binds together the community and fuels Rwanda’s turnover in a highly vulnerable environment.
The best way to start to grasp a city is just to walk in different neighborhoods. Our local guides started their explanation telling that it took less than a day to set up all paperwork for their business specialized on tourism. It looks that the government understood it very well, that stability and minimal bureaucratic interference brings new business, growth and more stability to build on. We started the tour with probably the best coffee I have ever had with certainly the best brand: “Question Everything Coffee”.
Kigali is a huge city with more than a million people (Rwanda has very open immigration policy and therefore lots of refugees or repatriating people) and lots of slums. Unemployment is still rocket high. The government here steps in strongly: offers or enforces relocation of vulnerable communities to the countryside and takes the land for new development project. A strong gentrification trend — which faces tough resistance. Local papers discuss at great length why people below the poverty line refuse much better houses far away from the capital city: they fear that they will lose even their minimal income too. As we continuously experience later, change is impossible without talking to people and understanding their fears and explaining openly about options, opportunities, law or health. Social and community engagement is where basically all NGO-s start and focus their efforts.
