The Private Sector Federation (PSF) has called upon the business community, especially those involved in cross-border trade to learn English and Swahili to be competitive in the region. 

Donatien Mungwararera, the PSF director for member services, capacity building and entrepreneurship promotion, said some Rwandan contractors have failed to win lucrative tenders because "they did not understand the bid documents written in English”.

"Though we carryout periodic trainings in languages, we do not reach everyone. So, individual traders should take an initiative to learn the most commonly spoken languages in the region, especially English and Swahili, to enhance their competitiveness,” he advised.

Rwanda changed its official language from French to English about seven years ago, and most local business owners do not know or understand Swahili, a regional language.

Rwanda and Burundi joined the EAC in 2009. The other three EAC member states - Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania use English.

According to Rwanda’s 2013 Manpower Survey, most Rwanda business people do not understand English and Swahili.

The report indicates that traders who use English and Swahili are about 11.1 per cent and 12.8 per cent of the business community, respectively.

The report released mid this year emphasises that this has put Rwandans at a disadvantage when competing for business with Kenyans and Ugandans.

Enock Kamugisha, a local supplier of construction materials, said he has failed to win tenders four times "because I did not understand all the requirements in the bid documents due to my limited proficiency in English language”.

"Bids are drafted in English; and there are many technical terms that we fail to understand. If you do not understand the bid document, you cannot fill it properly to meet all the requirements,” said Kamugisha.

He added that contractors do not want to hire lawyers to help, saying that would mean an extra cost they cannot afford.

Narcisse Ngezahayo, a Kigali-based maize dealer, with different branches in Bujumbura (Burundi) Musanze (Rwanda) and in Uganda, said he uses an interpreter.

"I am a Senior Six leaver, and during our time, French was the medium of instruction. Since English is the most used language in business within the East African Community, I hired someone to handle clients who use languages other than Kinyarwanda and French,” said Ngezahayo in an interview with Business Times.

EAC Affairs ministry intervenes

The Ministry of East African Community Affairs says that a language policy was developed to help ease language barriers faced by Rwandans while interacting with their counterparts in the community.

"We have a policy that aims at teaching Swahili from lower secondary education. The policy is already being implemented by the Ministry of Education,” said Jean Pierre Niyitegeka, the director of social development centre at the ministry.

Also, the Ministry of Trade and Industry conducts language (English and Swahili) lessons throughout the year, said Emmanuel Hategeka, the permanent secretary.

He however urged Rwandan traders not to limit their chances because of a ‘perceived’ language barrier. He argued that the only hindrance should be money or expertise but not language barrier.