Louis Busingyeᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠᅠ༝

Behind that smile lies a disturbed soul needing serious psychosocial support and care. Reach out and save a life. #MyThoughtsOnMentalHealth

Yesterday, our Executive Director, @Knooliet , visited @TheENDFund HQ in New York to further strengthen our partnership in advancing Neglected Tropical Diseases (#NTD) elimination efforts in Rwanda. Discussions highlighted the work of Rwanda NGOs Forum and our support through the Deworming Innovation Fund (DIF), where @RwandaNGOForum collaborates with @RBCRwanda to interrupt transmission of schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminths contributing to Rwanda’s 2030 elimination targets. She commended the strong leadership and political will demonstrated by @RwandaHealth and @RBCRwanda in driving NTDs control and elimination efforts. On behalf of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), she reaffirmed our commitment to a strengthened and sustained partnership with @TheENDFund toward saving lives and ending NTDs among vulnerable communities in Rwanda. #BeatNTDs #EndTheNeglect #UnitingToCombatNTDs #RoadToElimination @nsanzimanasabin @BrianChirombo @JNdayizigiye @YvanButera @CMuvunyi @DrDanielNgamije @WHORwanda @merckgroup @unicefrw @UNDP_Rwanda @WorldBankAfrica @ENDinAfrica @UNITAID @gatesfoundation @USAmbRwanda @FCDOGovUK @GlobalFund @SCIRwanda @RockefellerFdn @ELMAPhilanthro @AmrefAfrica @IntraHealth @MSF_USA @AfricaCDC @SciDevNet @HealthPolicyW @TuyishimeAlbert @TheLancet @ALMA_2030 @NTD_NGOs @AimableDr @UNFPARwanda @semakulam @Imbuto @RwandaLocalGov

Congratulations to the Morocco legal team - truly the greatest strikers in African football history. Who needs a world-class frontline when you have a committee that can score three goals from a mahogany desk two months after the final whistle?

The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia is privileged to receive Mr @ozonnia, a proud son of Nigeria and a committed servant of the United Nations. He did an excellent job in Rwanda, as @UN Resident Coordinator, and will certainly do much more in our sisterly country of #Ethiopia. All the best in my second home, my brother🙏🏾!

A long-awaited win at Safari Rally, our first rally and first win outside Rwanda. What an event! Rough, slippery & incredibly challenging. Grateful for a clean finish & to raise the Rwandan flag 🇷🇼 at such a prestigious rally. @KCBInKenya @BPRbankrw @KenGenKenya @FlyRwandAir

🇷🇼🇷🇼THANK YOU AND FAREWELL RWANDA🇷🇼🇷🇼 Our brothers and sisters from the Rwanda Defence Force said farewell to Jamaica yesterday following their two-month deployment to assist with the rebuilding effort in the western end of the island. Acting Brigade Commander Support Brigade

Bringing the trophy home with @FlyRwandAir. In a beautiful coincidence, Aliane Mutesi Murara was one of the pilots flying us home. From the rally cockpit to the aircraft cockpit 🇷🇼❤️ #RwandaWorks

Why many businesses in Kigali open with promise but close too soon, the working capital problem! There is an increasing a pattern in the business environment in Rwanda that deserves serious reflection. It is not uncommon to visit a restaurant in Kigali today and then return a few months later only to discover that it no longer exists. The same experience happens in other sectors. One may visit a shop at Kigali Heights, find it operating well at first, but after some time the business has closed or been replaced by another tenant. The same situation can also be seen in places like the Car Free Zone in Kisementi, where businesses open with excitement and promise but disappear after a relatively short period of time. One of the biggest underlying challenges behind this pattern is the misunderstanding between investment capital and working capital. Many entrepreneurs succeed in mobilizing significant resources to start a business, but very little attention is given to the capital required to sustain operations during the first months or even years. It is not uncommon to find someone who has saved or mobilized Rwf100 million to start a business but fails to reserve even Rwf50 million to run it. Most of the available funds are spent on renovations, furniture, branding, equipment, and creating an attractive appearance for the business. By the time the doors open, a large portion of the capital has already been consumed. What remains is very little liquidity to sustain daily operations. Yet working capital is what keeps a business alive. A business needs continuous cash flow to pay salaries, replenish stock, cover rent, settle electricity and water bills, manage logistics, and deal with unforeseen operational expenses. Without this financial buffer, even a promising business can begin to struggle within a few months. Take the example of someone opening a restaurant in Kigali. A large portion of the capital may go into interior decoration, kitchen equipment, furniture, and branding to create an appealing environment for customers. It is possible for Rwf70–80 million to be spent on the physical setup alone. However, if at least Rwf20–30 million is not reserved for working capital, challenges quickly emerge. The business begins struggling to purchase fresh ingredients, pay employees at the end of the month, maintain marketing activities, or handle routine operational costs. This situation partly explains a pattern that has become common in the hospitality sector. Many restaurants, bars, and hotels request 30 days or even longer to pay their suppliers. In many cases, this arrangement is not part of a structured financial strategy but rather a reflection of limited working capital. As a result, suppliers end up indirectly financing the operations of these businesses. Let look at this example, a supplier delivering meat, vegetables, beverages, or imported products may supply goods today but only receive payment after a month. If the restaurant itself is struggling with cash flow, payments can be delayed even further. Over time this creates a chain reaction where suppliers also begin facing financial pressure because their own cash cycles become disrupted. Eventually the entire business ecosystem becomes strained. Retail businesses face similar challenges. An entrepreneur may invest heavily in setting up a beautiful shop in a prime commercial location. The shop may look impressive on opening day, with well-designed shelves, lighting, and branding. However, after the first round of sales, the business may lack the cash required to replenish stock. Shelves begin to empty, product variety declines, and customers gradually stop coming because they cannot find what they need. Agriculture also presents similar situations. A young agripreneur may invest significant resources in acquiring land, irrigation equipment, and farm tools but forget to reserve funds for seeds, fertilizers, labor, transportation, and post-harvest handling. The farm may appear well prepared, yet it struggles to operate efficiently because operational cash is missing. In simple terms, investment capital builds the business, but working capital sustains it. Without adequate working capital, a business may look impressive on opening day but begin collapsing quietly behind the scenes due to operational pressures. Another challenge observed among entrepreneurs is the difficulty of pooling resources and building equity partnerships. Many individuals prefer to operate alone, even when the scale of the project requires stronger financial backing. There is often a preference to start and own a business individually rather than bringing together partners and investors. In many other economies, entrepreneurs combine resources. Three or four partners may pool their savings to create a stronger capital base and build a business that is better financed and more resilient. In the local context, however, the culture of equity collaboration remains limited. Each person attempts to start a small venture individually, which often results in undercapitalized businesses struggling from the beginning. Another issue that deserves attention is the lack of specialization and focus among many entrepreneurs. It is common to find someone running several small ventures simultaneously using the same limited capital. A person may operate a small shop, start a printing business, and at the same time attempt to invest in farming or transportation. Instead of strengthening one business until it becomes stable and profitable, the limited capital becomes fragmented across several ventures. This fragmentation weakens all the businesses involved. Closely related to this challenge is the limited level of innovation in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Many businesses tend to copy what others are already doing rather than identifying new opportunities or developing differentiated services. As a result, clusters of identical businesses emerge in the same neighborhoods. One street may suddenly have numerous cafés, several pharmacies, multiple liquor stores, restaurants, bars, or nursery schools all attempting to serve the same market. This copy and paste approach to entrepreneurship creates oversupply and intense competition for the same customers. Instead of expanding the market, businesses end up dividing an already limited customer base. When revenues fall below expectations, many of these businesses struggle to survive. When some of these ventures eventually collapse, the immediate reaction is often to blame the government. However, the government is not a parent to entrepreneurs. While it has a responsibility to create an enabling environment for business, the discipline of planning, managing capital properly, and making sound business decisions ultimately rests with business owners themselves. What may be needed more within the business community is openness and a willingness to share experiences. Many entrepreneurs face similar challenges, yet very few openly discuss their failures or the lessons learned from them. The culture of silence and secrecy prevents others from learning from those experiences. Greater openness about what works and what does not work in business could help avoid repeating the same mistakes. Societies progress not only through success stories but also through honest reflection about failures. Improving financial literacy, encouraging partnerships, promoting specialization, and nurturing innovation could significantly strengthen the survival and growth of businesses across Rwanda. In many cases, success comes not from doing many things at once or copying what others are doing, but from focusing on one idea, managing capital with discipline, collaborating with others, and continuously learning from both successes and failures. linkedin.com/pulse/why-many…

Imyaka 23, categorie enye: Sarah Ishimwe yavuye kuri Moto ahita atwara bisi.

Two years ago, I resigned from my job in Kenya and moved to Rwanda with just a backpack and a suitcase. To many people around me, the move seemed sudden. But deep down, I was certain it was the right step for me. THREAD

Muslim communities are observing Ramadan. Christian communities are observing Lent. This is a season for solidarity & generosity. It breaks my heart to see this period shattered by escalating violence in Lebanon. This war must stop.

EDITORIAL: Community-funded roads can work if #Kigali gets the balance right. Read⬇️ newtimes.co.rw/article/34036/…

@ferwabaRW It's always unfortunate whenever politics comes in between sports and its glory. If anything, there's no better catalyst for peace than sports!

RSSB Tigers Basketball Club has been officially designated to represent Rwanda in BAL Season 6.

I sometimes struggle to understand our hospitality sector. We have many beautiful hotels and restaurants, but the portions of food are often very small, the prices quite high, and in some places the standards do not match what one would expect. Yesterday after having lunch at a well known place with a friend from the region , i still felt hungry and ended up passing by Freedom Restaurant in Kisementi just to have a proper meal. Something must not be right somewhere!

Honoured to have engaged with President Paul Kagame @PaulKagame on the sidelines of the Nuclear Energy Summit in Paris. His visionary leadership, commitment to progress, and dedication to Rwanda’s development continue to inspire many across Africa and beyond. President Kagame stands as a powerful example of the remarkable leaders shaping the continent’s future and unlocking Africa’s immense potential. 🌍 #ASR

On the sidelines of CSW70, our team had the honor of meeting Laura Nyirinkindi, Member of the Working Group on Discrimination Against Women & Girls, @UN_WGDAWG , to discuss Rwanda’s best practices in access to justice, the role of AI in access to justice, and the remaining challenges in the sector. The discussion will contribute to strengthening collaboration and advancing innovative solutions for more inclusive justice systems.

Yesterday we bade farewell to @UNRwanda's outgoing coordinator @ozonnia as he concludes his tour of duty in Rwanda. We thank him for his steadfast partnership, which has been instrumental in shaping Rwanda’s development journey, specifically his contributions to the implementation of NST1 and elaboration of the National Strategy for Transformation (NST2). 🇷🇼🇺🇳 Wishing him all the best in his future endeavors! #Rwanda #UN #Partnership

Students from EFASE and Lycée Georges Duby visited @Kigali_Memorial and participated in @Aegis_Trust’s Peace and Values Education training, learning about Rwanda’s journey of healing & reconciliation & reflecting on the role young people can play in building a more peaceful world

Building on insights from previous sessions, discussions continued today during NCHR’s training on #UniversalPeriodicReview (UPR) & #UNTreatyBody mechanisms.Members & staff of @RwandaParliamnt joined NCHR Cres to strengthen #HumanRights reporting & implementation with @UNRwanda.

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A meaningful farewell meeting between the Minister of Justice, @eugirashebuja1, and the outgoing UN RC @ozonnia. They reaffirmed the strong partnership between Rwanda and the United Nations in advancing justice sector priorities, human rights, and institutional strengthening.