First Lady Jeannette Kagame attended the celebration of the 10th anniversary of Inkomoko, a leading business accelerator in East Africa, which took place in Kigali on Saturday, September 3.

Also in attendance were ministers, senior government officials, private sector leaders and over 400 entrepreneurs.

The anniversary, themed ‘A Celebration of Community,’ was marked as Inkomoko revealed they had provided advisory services to more than 40,000 clients over the past decade.

With operations in Rwanda, Kenya and Ethiopia, the organisation says it has committed over $7.7 million of investments into small businesses, and spurred the creation of more than 35,000 jobs in East Africa.

In her speech, Mrs Kagame addressed the Inkomoko family, saying: "The wonderful work you have put in, is truly a gift to us all, and judging from your model’s exportation to Kenya and Ethiopia, you are on the right track to a global presence.”

"You have shown inspiring, deeply humane inclusiveness in your service provision, and embody the Rwandan effort to overcome poverty, and protect the dignity of not only our citizens, but also those who have sought refuge in Rwanda.”

From the perspective of small businesses, the First Lady noted that ‘thinking big’ did not necessarily mean "being big.”

"I believe you understand a core aspect of our President’s pledge and call to "thinking big”; something we must always remember,” she said. "Thinking big is not always about being big, which I hope small and medium businesses understand.

"Thinking big is about the greatness of your ideas, the scale of the potential impact, and the highest of standards, that you are willing to perpetually demand of yourselves.”

She commended Inkomoko’s contribution to the National Strategy for Transformation.

Reflecting on the firm’s anniversary, Julienne Oyler, Inkomoko’s CEO said, "We are so proud that so many entrepreneurs have allowed us to walk with them in their journey. The work our team has done to improve livelihoods, grow small businesses, and create jobs inspires me to do even more to see communities thrive.”

Inkomoko started operations in Rwanda in 2012, where it now has nine offices. The company expanded to Kenya and Ethiopia to reach another nine communities with its proven model of support.

"Inkomoko’s support, mentorship and loan at very low rates were a real lifeline,” said Emmanuel Tuyisenge, CEO of TEMACO Builders, a Kigali-based construction company and Inkomoko client.

"We were able to expand our business and committed to always pay back our loan on time because we knew that when we timely pay back, other entrepreneurs who are struggling just as we were, also get a chance to access funding.”

Tuyisenge donated Rwf1 million to Inkomoko to facilitate other small businesses.

The organisation plans to increase its reach to over 500,000 clients in eight countries.

"The Mastercard Foundation is proud to have partnered with Inkomoko to support micro, small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs in Rwanda who continue to demonstrate resilience and determination in their communities. We look forward to seeing more enterprises grow and succeed across East Africa in the coming years,” said Rica Rwigamba, the country Head of the Mastercard Foundation in Rwanda.

The anniversary gathered all 200 Inkomoko staff back in Kigali for a retreat on how to better serve their clients for the next ten years.