The Rwandan Embassy in China has launched a photo contest in which different Chinese photographers will travel to Rwanda and take photos of tourist attractions, economic progress and cultural exchanges between China and Rwanda. The contest, launched on Friday at the Rwandan embassy in Beijing, will see Chinese photographers travel to Rwanda in January 2019 and take photos of different aspects of Rwanda including landscape, wildlife, and people. Dubbed “Rwanda-China Friendship Cup Photo Contest,” it is organised with the purpose of promoting Rwanda-China relations through pictures. According to the organisers, the different participants will include social media people, bloggers, or even ordinary photographers. The pictures taken will be meant for an awarding ceremony which will be held in Kigali next year. Speaking at the event, Charles Kayonga, Rwanda’s Ambassador to China said that the contest will greatly enhance the visibility of the wonderfully beautiful and abundant resources of the country. “It will also help in deepening the knowledge of China in Rwanda as well,” he said. “This photography contest in particular shall enhance knowledge and information of the following: Rwanda’s fascinating landscape and its tourism resources. The landscape of Rwanda is characterized by angulating lowlands in the east, rugged hills that radiate from the centre of the country to the south, to the west, and north, culminating in the volcanic mountains in the north west,” he said. Kayonga also announced to Chinese tourists that they are now able to directly book tour packages to Rwanda following the launch of the ‘Visit Rwanda’ online pavilion and flagship store on Fliggy, Alibaba Group’s Travel Platform. The envoy too told his audience about the different tourism packages in Rwanda ranging from its beautiful terrain to its wildlife and exotic vegetation that has been preserved due to “strong ecological measures” by the government of Rwanda that has made ecological and environmental conservation a principal program in economic development. He also told them about the country being the safest in Africa, its cleanliness, as well as developed health services, and good governance, “Rwanda has also been credited for the high level of governance. It has been listed as number one in governance transparency and the second fastest growing economy on the continent,” he said. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
