What do you want addressed by National Dialogue Council?

As Rwandans meet at the 11th National Dialogue Council, better known as Umushyikirano, today, The New Times’ Eugene Kwibuka asked people of different backgrounds to say what they would like to see addressed at the conclusion of the meeting. Eugene Iyamuremye, 24-year-old airtime vendor. ‘They need to address the issue of unemployment. We need to see more and more people working instead of looking for jobs all the time.’Emmanuel Vuguziga, a farmer from Gisagara District, Southern Province, and a porter in Kigali. ‘They should talk about the issue of land use. The land consolidation policy has made it difficult for farmers’ food security. We grow one single crop like maize in areas where we used to grow cassava and sweet potatoes and we end up with little to eat when the maize doesn’t grow or cooperatives take too long to buy the harvested maize.’Edouard Munyamariza, president of the Rwanda Civil Society Platform. ‘It’s important for this forum to talk about the unity of Rwandans because it’s the foundation for solving issues. Anything we could ever do without unity would be a waste of time. Land use issues such as late compensation for expropriation and lack of affordable housing are also burning concerns and how to improve the quality of education in Rwanda remains a serious preoccupation.’Sam Alexander, Director of Marketing at Grand Afro Hotels and Resorts Ltd, proprietors of The Indian Chef restaurants and AGS country clubs. ‘They should talk about tourism development upcountry. Rwanda has a lot of potential for tourism and the government needs to help mediate between investors and local people in order to unlock this potential. For instance, it needs to be clear who to ask in case one wants to acquire land and at what reasonable price. The local people need to understand that in the end they are the ones who will benefit from these investments because it means they will have jobs.Clement Uwiringiyimana, Journalist with Radio Flash FM. ‘There needs to be a way of engaging the Rwandan Diaspora in developing the country further because we don’t need a situation where Rwandans who don’t live here adopt an indifferent attitude. We also need to talk about how to develop rural areas. Right now Kigali is shining but the poverty situation in some parts of the countryside is appalling.’Eric Noheri, Commercial motorcycle rider. ‘As a youth, the biggest challenge we have is limited employment. The private sector should be empowered to create more jobs and government needs to strengthen the ability of cooperatives to manage sustainable businesses because that’s where our jobs come from. Saccos should shift from serving interests of our bosses and start caring about the needs of all.’Winnie Kayonga, Proprietor of Shades Corner Take Away. ‘Access to finance remains a big issue. The Government should also keep the momentum with regards to investing in Technical and Vocational Education Training because it would be good to recruit skilled labour force.’James Gihana, Kigali-based entrepreneur. ‘We need to talk about how to help our rural people get access to finance. They are also battling with the issue of access to markets. Applying for a loan to implement a business idea shouldn’t be like sitting an exam. The government should also have a deliberate policy to cater for the elderly because they are now living longer and need to be included in our economic development plans.’