Rwandan ambassador praises an innovative land of opportunity

For James Kimonyo, China is a country worth careful examination for its valuable development experience. Since his arrival in China in October, the Rwandan ambassador has traveled to several cities, including Shanghai in East China and the Southwestern municipality of Chongqing.

The 55-year old veteran diplomat, who is on his first ever posting in China and Asia, said what he saw in the cities was "just unbelievable".

China used to be "more or less like what Africa is today", he said. "But in four decades this country has been able to really tremendously transform into something ... very, very forward looking and promising."

Kimonyo said one of his focuses is to study key drivers of China's transformation, and see how they fit into Rwanda's development agenda.

"As I travel across this country, I look at technology, ... for instance, how China applies technology in education to give young people the necessary skills, to be innovative, ... and how technology is used in agriculture to increase productivity," he said.

China's commitment to openness is another aspect that the ambassador finds impressive.

Recalling his visit to a market of imported commodities in Yiwu, Zhejiang province in early December, Kimonyo said he was surprised to see goods from a number of developed countries on display for Chinese consumers to choose from.

"I saw goods from Australia. From Canada. From Germany. From France," he said, adding that Rwanda wants to boost its trade and expand exports of coffee, tea and other products to China, its largest trading partner.

Kimonyo didn't hide his urge for increased Chinese investment in his country.

"Initially, whenever you invited investors to come, they would say, yeah, but you don't have enough energy, you don't have enough this and that. I would say, Ok, energy is also an opportunity for investment. Come and invest in energy generation," he said.

"The approach (of Rwanda) is that we have a lot of challenges, a lot of problems, but they also come with a lot of opportunities," he added.

Rwanda's economy has been growing rapidly over the past two decades, according to the World Bank. Its annual GDP growth hit 8.6 percent in 2018.

The country ranks among the best African countries in terms of government integrity and ease of doing business, and is one of the safest and cleanest African countries, according to China's Ministry of Commerce.

By the end of 2017, Chinese companies had invested $140 million in the country, mainly in the garment, mining, real estate and hotel sectors, the ministry says. In 2017, Rwanda's trade with China reached $157 million, with a year-on-year increase of more than 10 percent.

Kimonyo, who has served as Rwandan ambassador to South Africa, the United States and Kenya, said he is happy to work in China at a time when the bilateral relationship "is at its best level", and that China has contributed to his country's economic growth in different ways.

The ambassador said there are more than 900 Chinese companies, big and small, operating in Rwanda, and they have created jobs and generated tax revenue in Rwanda, and have increased the country's exports.

Chinese companies have also taken up a major share in the country's construction industry. The companies have contracted to building infrastructure, including roads, hydropower plants and landmark buildings in the capital, Kigali.

Kimonyo praised the Chinese companies for the "extremely good" quality of their work.

"There is not any preferential treatment to Chinese companies," he said. "It's just based on the fact that they are very competitive. They are very hard working. And they deliver projects on time. In the end, the client would say, this is the contract I need."

Besides inviting investment and developing infrastructure, Rwanda is eyeing further growth in tourism, the largest source of its foreign exchange earnings.

The country, also called "the land of a thousand hills", is known for mountain gorillas and other wildlife species, and has four national parks.

According to Kimonyo, there has been "a sharp rise" of the number of Chinese tourists in Rwanda since President Xi Jinping paid a state visit in July 2018. "We want to build on that momentum," the ambassador said.

In order to further tap into the large potential of the Chinese market, Rwanda carried out a road show in Shanghai and Guangzhou in November to promote its tourist attractions.

The road show will continue, Kimonyo said, adding that the embassy will hold a photo contest, like it did in 2018, inviting photographers to share their images taken in Rwanda, as a way of encouraging more people to visit the country.

Speaking of how ties between China and Rwanda will develop, Kimonyo said the outlook is "very positive", and Rwanda's cooperation will grow with China within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.