Entrepreneurship and monopoly don’t co-exist

Editor, I’m still wondering why no one has yet to come out and strongly criticise the City of Kigali and the Rwanda Utility Regulatory Authority for their unilateral decision to offer exclusive transportation market to three companies and then shut the rest out!

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Editor,

This is with reference to Stephen Mugisha’s column, "Entrepreneurship is all about positive thinking” (The New Times, November 12).

If you look at entrepreneurship as a mechanism of ending poverty, we have to look at how it is transforming lives in Rwanda through the opportunities it provides for all people, particularly the rural folks, to establish microenterprises.

Government needs to provide an enabling environment for stimulating entrepreneurship development, so people, both in rural and urban corners, can create small and medium scale enterprises.

In order for in-country entrepreneurship to take hold, the government and its agencies must take a more proactive approach and provide greater services. The government and the private sector should increase their support for entrepreneurial/vocational training programmes as part of the tertiary education system. To what extent these are being nurtured and supported needs a critical look.

Kimenyi, Kenya

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I’m still wondering why no one has yet to come out and strongly criticise the City of Kigali and the Rwanda Utility Regulatory Authority for their unilateral decision to offer exclusive transportation market to three companies and then shut the rest out!

How will entrepreneurship culture thrive in an environment where "Might is Right” and "Winner Takes All”?

If we want to think positive about entrepreneurship, we must then be reminded that entrepreneurship and monopoly don’t coexist.  

Major economies like the United States of America are built on small businesses. Can anyone please explain to me how the City of Kigali and Rura’s decision to limit competition in transportation industry is not bad for entrepreneurship?

Abdul Rahman Ntaganda, Kigali