Rwanda eyes investors at global ICT forum

Rwanda is set to showcase her investment potential in the ICT sector at the 2012 International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Telecom World conference slated for next week in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The four-day high-level forum will bring together ICT stakeholders, decision-maker leaders from across the globe. Speaking to The New Times yesterday, Minister of Youth and ICT, Jean Philbert Nsengimana, disclosed that about eight local technology companies will take part in the forum which will run from October 14 to 18.“We shall represent Rwanda in the international platform showcasing ICT investment opportunities and the progress made in ICT sector,” he noted.Nsengimana stated that the country is highly engaged with ITU, adding that many countries seek to emulate Rwanda’s leadership, in terms of ICT for development in Africa.According to ITU, the conference will be a platform to share knowledge and build consensus on the current profound transformation of the ICT sector, its implications to the industry, other vertical sectors and the world at large.The delegation to be led by Nsengimana will include among others, ICT Chamber of the Private Sector Federation, Rwanda Development Board/ICT, Hehe Limited, Zilencio Creativo, and OSCA Connect. “At the conference, we will be able to attract investors to come and invest in the ICT sector. For instance, we have potential ICT areas we want people to invest in like access network and technopole projects, among others,” the Minister said.“We have 63 hectares of land at the Kigali Special Economic Zone; the only organisation which has confirmed that it would develop its space is Carnegie Mellon University.”Nsengimana stated they will do business project outsourcing due to the fact that Rwanda environment is ripe for an ICT sector take-off.“We also want to attract venture capitalists in the area of ICT. We have very many innovative projects in our country which lack financing and we shall use the conference platform to attract financiers.” The event will bring together thousands of participants and some 300 global leaders, including Heads of State and Government, Ministers, industry CEOs, regulators, digital thought leaders, technology consultants and academics.ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun I. Touré, said the conference will bring together visionary keynote speakers who are all leaders in the ICT industry with valuable, strategic insights into the current state of disruption in the sector and its implications for business, government and the world. Among these will be Kaspersky Lab CEO and founder Eugene Kaspersky and high-level representatives from Cisco and Ericsson among others with each scheduled to address a plenary session.“ITU Telecom World 2012 provides an excellent platform to share these visions – and enable us all to learn and benefit from them.”The conference will among others discuss issues to do with global future of ICT, cyber security, women in ICT, digital migrations, emergency telecommunications, broadband connectivity and e-health, among others.

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Rwanda eyes investors at global ICT forum