Training to improve work performance is a key aspect of Rwanda’s future economic development, officials at the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI) have said.

Speaking at the launch of the organisation’s Rwanda chapter last week, Klaus Wittkuhn, the president-elect of ISPI, hinted at Rwanda’s potential to become a regional performance hub.

ISPI is an international organisation that uses trainings, knowledge sharing, and networking to improve the productivity and effectiveness of workers.

The launch was a partnership between the USAID-funded Human and Institutional Capacity Development Project in Rwanda and the Rwanda Organisation for Professional Management Consultants.

"I think that especially in a country like Rwanda, performance improvement really forms a pillar of development for the country,” Wittkuhn said.

Improving work performance, he explained, solves a company’s productivity problem in a low-cost, efficient way that can lead to concrete gains in work output and profit.

Performance improvement has already made great strides in the country, said Stephen Kelly, a past board member of ISPI.

Experts on the ground

He cited the Ministry of Agriculture as an example, where he is currently improving work performance within the financial management system.

"We identified some areas of skill and knowledge deficiency, so we looked into auditing, policy management and all sorts of different areas for a solution,” Kelly said.

The team ended up bringing in experts to coach workers on different aspects of the financial system and developing aids to help employees do their jobs correctly.

Rwanda has made progress in training performance improvement experts, teaching more than 60 Rwandans to be certified performance technologists in the past year.

"At this point, Rwanda has more CPT-trained people than any other country in Africa,” said John Palmucci, who does CPT certification in Rwanda. 

"We want to make Rwanda a hub so consultants can travel to other countries from here.” 

Palmucci said Rwanda has the unique potential to be an example to other African countries who want to implement similar programs.  

The chairperson of Rwanda’s Organisation for Professional Management Consultants, Vianney Makuza, said the start of the ISPI chapter is the first step in making Rwanda a regional centre of performance excellence.