It can never be overemphasised that Rwanda offers a model of good governance which Africa can emulate, an African Union official said yesterday. Dr René N’guettia Kouassi, the Director of Department of Economic Affairs at the AU Commission, made the remarks on the last day of the African Union summit in Kigali. “We have had the privilege of attending more than twenty OAU/AU Summits, outside its headquarters. But that of Kigali, which is not even yet over, reflects the aspects of a successful Summit from the viewpoint of organisation, hospitality, transportation and accommodation,” he said in a release hours before the closure of the summit. Dr Kouassi observed that the inconvenience, usually experienced by the staff and other delegates, had disappeared from people’s talks. Consequently, he said, the transportation, catering at the Kigali Convention Centre, the availability of personnel for technical assistance, health services (which were reinforced by local doctors), the warm welcome of the hostesses as well the personnel in hotels, and so on illustrated perfectly the success. Kouassi described the security aspect as the icing on the cake, which by its exemplary deployment, rigour and serenity met with the full cognisance of all the security agents of all delegations. “All these reasons perfectly boost the title of our article, namely that Rwanda is a nest of good governance that can inspire most African countries,” he said. Moreover, according to the official, apart from the organisation of the Summit and all its corollary, other constituent areas of good governance were observed. He outlined these as the development of an economy driven by private initiatives, urban development focused on cleanliness, green spaces, the quality of road networks, respect for all aspects of sustainable economy, and low emission of greenhouse gases by urban means of transport. “The environmental management and urban infrastructures in Kigali, are, therefore, the elements of good practice, indeed of good governance, to be spread across Africa. As the African proverb goes, “Even if you were against the hare, you must admit that it knows how to run”. He called upon Mayors of African municipalities and cities to send experts to Kigali ‘‘to not only draw inspiration from what exists there, but to learn from mechanisms financing activities in the field of public affairs.’’ “This also affords an opportunity for Rwandese experts to learn from other experiences to improve their performance in sectors where they would lack experience.” Africa, according to the release, within the dynamics of its development process, is in the quest for best practices to draw inspiration in order to avoid reinventing the wheel. “In this regard Rwanda stands out as a way forward, just like many other countries that are replete with examples that can be included in the records of best practices to be identified and popularised in Africa.” editorial@newtimes.co.rw
