Where would any Rwandan want to see the country in 30 to 50 years from now? Perhaps the best way to envision the future is by envisioning the castles that the youth build in the air. Some of those innocent ideas can shape the world if allowed to blossom. But how would a nation like Rwanda even get such going?

The First Lady, Jeannette Kagame, has some solutions. Mrs Kagame has challenged the youth to defy the status quo by learning to step out of their comfort zones, and challenge the rules of the world’s economic environment to create life changing opportunities for themselves and their communities.

According to Mrs Kagame, like Rwanda has done over the years to beat the worst odds in post-Genocide efforts to turn around the economy, the nation must strive to leverage the youthful spirit within to create business and products that can transform the future generations, from consumers to innovators.

Already, the Ministry of Youth and ICT, as well as other initiatives such as Imbuto Foundation and K-Lab, are doing a lot in helping the youth put to good use their creative and innovative ideas.

However, many of the youth continue to be held back by lack of resources and opportunity to showcase their entrepreneurial minds. But through youth groups and forums, the youth and other stakeholders can continue charting ways to break the barrier.

Challenging the youth to take charge of shaping the destiny of the nation and helping them realise their dreams remains one of the best ways to guarantee the future of the country. They are the majority of the population and they are very first beneficiaries of the future the nation envisages. 

This fact means most of the projects aligned to future goals should be placed at the hands of the youth to shape in a manner they envision. The older generation can then concentrate on policy-making, leaving the conceptualization of ideas and bearing them in the hands of the youth.