He is an artists favorite artist. He has fans in Rwanda, East Africa and across the globe. He’s been bubbling over for the last few years but I think its his time now.  I am excited to have Mike Kayihura on the week’s episode of The Long Form podcast  If you want to share your thoughts on the topics I discuss use the hashtag #LongFormRw on Twitter and follow us on Twitter and Instagram on our handle @TheLongFormRw Be a part of the conversation.

For far too long, Rwandans have spent their hard-earned money enriching other countries, especially when it came to apparel. we either were the target market for second hand clothes from the West, or new, cheap clothes from the East.  Since the Government of Rwanda decided to ban second hand clothes, and facilitate a local clothing industry, we have seen some positive movement.  Today, on the Long Form podcast, I speak with Mathew Rugamba, Founder of House of Tayo, a pioneer in Made in Rwanda...

Human Rights Watch recently released a report titled “Join us or die: Rwanda’s extraterritorial repression”, in which they accuse the Government of Rwanda of committing human rights abuses on Rwandan nationals living abroad. In reaction, local writer and activist Gatete Nyiringabo Ruhumuliza, penned a rebuttal titled ‘Human Rights Watch: Rwanda’s ‘Uninvited Savior’.  We shall discuss the Report in question, Gatete’s rebuttal and the way forward for the Government of Rwanda in this week’s...

Rwanda is many things. On one hand, it is among the poorest countries in the world and on the other hand, it is, to me at least, one of the most forward-thinking nations on the globe. Actually, when you think about it, the lack of resources perhaps creates the innovation.  Let’s look back at what’s been done so far. Rwanda partnered with an American startup, Zipline, to deliver lifesaving drugs to rural health centers by drone. Then it partnered with Starlink, Elon Musk’s company, to provide...

Rwanda, like many other developing nations, has borne the brunt of climate change. We’ve seen searing hot temperatures over the last long dry season and now, when it rains, its not the gentle drizzle of the past. Rather we suffer rain storms that destroy farmers fields, and cause killer landslides.  What is most unfair about this climate change is the fact that we aren’t the cause of it, but rather the victims. It is the industrialized countries that have put all of us at risk, with their...

It’s been a trying few months for our pockets. Food prices are consistently rising and with new prices for fuel, transport costs will be higher. This will surely make life harder for each and everyone of us. In addition to all of this pressures, our national currency, the Rwandan franc, has been losing value against the US dollar, leading to what podcast listener called, an issue of “inflation, inflation, inflation”.   So what is going on, how did we find ourselves in this situation and more...

Rwanda is just emerging out of its long dry season, and as if often the case during that time, food prices have risen around the country.  What is particularly shocking this year however, is just how high prices of our staple foods have become. Kigali residents are seeing prices of potatoes, beans and rice double or even triple.  The question that I, along with many other people, ask ourselves is, what is going on? Have our farmers simply stopped going out to their fields to farm? Or are we...

FDLR, FNL, and the other genocidal militia operating out of the forests and hills of Eastern DRC have one goal in mind, the violently overthrow of the Rwandan government and commencement of another genocide.  In 2008, Chris McGreal, a journalist from The Guardian, travelled to the jungles of Eastern DRC and reported on the FDLR. In one extremely chilling exchange with a 13-year-old FDLR militiaman, who left Rwanda as a baby on his mother’s back, Chris revealed the hateful ideology that...

Over two months ago, veteran journalist, Marc Hoogsteyns, became the very first international reporter to pay a visit to the M23 rebel strongholds in Eastern DRC.  As he recounted during an interview that he had on this very podcast in July, he not only spoke to a couple of M23 junior officers, he also met and interviewed young, Rwandan-born FDLR fighters who had been captured on the battle front.  Taking advantage of a lull in the fighting Marc last week went back to the DRC, and got the...

The announcement that Rwanda will partner with German-Canadian company, Dual Fluid, to conduct a Critical Demonstration Experiment is probably the biggest news this month. Why? Because this experiment is the first step in Rwanda’s nuclear journey.  This partnership is really exciting for me because this means that Rwanda is on the cusp of joining the exclusive club of nuclear states. And for a country like ours that needs cheap, sufficient power for both people and industries, nuclear is a...

Adonis Filer currently plays point guard for the Rwanda Energy Group (REG) basketball team. He holds the BAL record for the most assists in a single game. Adonis has also represented  Rwanda in the Afrobasket tournament.  Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois in 1993, Adonis Jovon Filer started his basketball career in high school and sustained to college and beyond. Adonis played for the Clemson Tigers and Florida Atlantic teams in college.    If you want to share your thoughts on the topics...

With the announcement yesterday of the new partnership with German superclub, Bayern Munich, it brings to three, the number of European football teams that Visit Rwanda partners with. The first two being Arsenal FC, in England, and Paris Saint Germain in France.  What is especially noteworthy is that this new partnership comes exactly half a decade since the first one was signed with Arsenal in 2018.  In the year that the first Visit Rwanda partnership was announced Rwanda earned $425 million...

The Government’s investment in building a world class conference and sporting ecosystem is obvious. It has spent a reported 300 million dollars on the Convention Center, 104 million dollars on the BK Arena and is spending around 130 million dollars on renovating the Amahoro Stadium. This is in addition to the close to a billion dollars that has been spent on upgrading Kanombe airport and increasing the Rwandair fleet.  Some people will say, that that was money that could have been better...

On the morning of the 26th of July, a group of Nigerien soldiers from the presidential guard detained president Mohamed Bazoum and his family. This action was then followed by Presidential guard commander General Abdurahaman Tchiani proclaiming himself the leader of a new military junta. The events that followed included presidential guard forces closing the country's borders, suspending state institutions, and declaring a curfew. This is the fifth military coup d'état since the country...

The concept of sheer luck giving us access to untold wealth is a tale as old as time. The other tale that is as old as time is, a fool and his money will be easily parted. The gambling industry is at the nexus of these two concepts.  The multi-billion-dollar gambling industry is probably the lucrative in the world. In fact, gambling is the foundation of entire cities like Las Vegas, Monte Carlo and Macau. The bright light of the gambling halls and the money they generate hide a darker side....

When we are asked to identify the East African region’s big brother, we look to Kenya. It’s the richest country in the 8-nation East African community, its home to the biggest metropolis, Nairobi, it’s the regional manufacturing hub and its currency is the strongest. Its Gross Domestic Product in 2021 was slightly over 110 billion dollars. In comparison Rwanda’s was just over $11.5 Bn. Its city of Mombasa is an absolutely important port of entry into and out of East Africa  A nation with such...

The never-ending crisis in Eastern DRC is often in the news. We watch the terrifying scenes of war and carnage on our tv screens, then read stories of rape and killing in our newspapers. And on social media, we see images of the EACs heads of state meeting in different East African capitals to discuss the insecurity that has bedeviled Eastern Congo for close to 30 years.   If you only listen to what the DRC the UN, the NGOs and the human rights groups are saying, you’ll think that the M23 is...

For 4 days, from between 17- 20 July, Rwanda’s capital will welcome thousands of guests from around the world who’ve come to attend the Women Deliver 2023 Conference. With its slogan ‘Where the world comes together to advance Gender Equality’ the Women Deliver conference will host the great and the good of the global gender equality movement.  Choosing Rwanda as the host nation was, in my opinion, an easy decision. Not only did it have the capacity to host the event due to its investment in...

On the 30th of June, the Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC) released the second Rwanda NCD Risk Factors Survey, to quite a bit of media fanfare.  The study surveyed 5,676 people from across the country, the majority between the age of 30 and 44. And while the study included findings about tobacco smoking, physical activity, and food choices, the findings that seemed to have worried everyone, including the President of Rwanda, was the finding on alcohol consumption.  So, what were these findings?...

What is it like being ambassador to the DRC representing Rwanda? What are the motives of the political class in Kinshasa when it comes to the violent escalation of the conflict in Eastern DRC? Will it rope in Rwanda? Or is it all part of the Congo’s election process?   Former ambassador to the DRC, Vincent Karega, joined me last week to answer my questions on the history of Banyarwanda in Congo. This week we shall try to unpack what is happening today  If you didn’t listen to last week’s...

Once again, the decades long conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and its myriad of players in in the news once again.  This time because of the UN Group of Experts Report that was leaked to media at the start of last week. The Report details the arming and financing of the FDLR by the DRC Government, M23 activity and makes allegations about Rwanda’s involvement in the conflict. These allegations were rubbished by the Rwandan government in a statement that was released on...

The Minister of Finance and Economic Planning on Thursday revealed that Rwanda’s national budget for the year 2023/2024 is 5.1trillion Rwandan francs. That is slightly above 4.3 billion US dollars.  This years budget is a 6% increase from last years. My biggest takeaway from the budget reading the fact that foreign aid was only 13% of the total budget. While still high, we have to remember that there was a time overseas development assistance was the majority of the budget.  We are slowly but...

The news that the UN court in The Hague would not try infamous genocide funder, Felician Kabuga, for his crimes on the grounds of his old age, though sad, did not come as a shock to me. So, with this and other recent judicial travesties in mind, where do I think this all leaves us?  I  also  examine the reasoning behind Malawi’s move to revoke the citizenship of over 200 Rwandans following the arrest of Fulgence Kayishema in South Africa.  We will then conclude the podcast with some positive...

This week, I shall share my thoughts on what I saw during  BAL, the week long festival of basketball as well as what this all means for the private sector.   I shall also talk about the news that Somalia might soon be entering the East African community and explain why I think it might be a bad idea.   We will then end this weeks podcast talking about Uganda’s anti-homosexual law, the international reaction to it and what lessons we can take from the US’s threat to cut its assistance to...

The running joke is that Rwandans should just concentrate on hosting international sporting events and forget about actually winning any competition.  So, should we just give up, concentrate on building amazing sporting facilities and become known as the country where foreign teams come to win from? Or is there a plan to turn things around?   To answer this question, I am joined today by the Permanent Secretary of The Ministry of Sports,Zephanie Niyonkuru.  If you want to share your thoughts...