Well, it
has been about a month since I have come back home and I suppose it is time to
wrap up this blog. I think I have covered a lot of ground in the past posts, so
if I repeat in this one, please forgive me. My goal today is to mostly reflect
on the things we did and how an outsider might view Rwanda as opposed to how
the country actually exists. Maybe a bit of perspective from a business
standpoint, and a bit as a tourist, and a little more as someone who now knows
people in the country.
What I
want everyone to take away from all of my posting, photos, and conversation is
that even though Rwanda certainly is a developing country, it is not a bad
place to be. It is strange to think about the past 18 years of recovery and see
almost no signs of violence or conflict. There are random grenade attacks,
which seem bad, but compared to the nightly news in nearly any large US city
where there is a shooting or two every night, there is no violence in Rwanda.
There are areas of Kigali where things like theft are more likely, but again in
any city and some small towns that is a problem too. So overall it seemed like
a really safe place. We were out past midnight a few nights and walked a few
blocks home with no problems. There are always police and security guards around
keeping the peace, though you wonder if there is no crime because of the
guards, or if nothing would happen if they were gone. Difficult to say, but the
security did seem to be over the top in some places for no real reason. Some
buildings like the mall called the MTN Centre seem to have installed metal
detectors as more of a status symbol than a real security measure.
Feeling
safe in Rwanda was great for getting comfortable and helped get into the
culture a bit, which I think is the only way an American should experience the
country. There are easy ways to stay only where the ‘Westerners’ are, but I
can’t figure out why that’s where you’d want to be. I can go to a nice hotel
restaurant in Chicago or San Diego, or even Omaha, so why would I want to in Kigali?
(You can see the first edition of the blog for more about the food in Rwanda.).
I think it was well worth the experience to ride the busses and the moto taxis
and to walk with the locals.
However,
Americans are having an influence on parts of the Rwandan business climate.
Like a lot of African countries Coca-Cola is huge, using their established model
of putting large Coke refrigerators in restaurants and stores, thereby
providing them with refrigeration they might not have been able to afford, in
turn for the free advertising. The Coke example is one many people are familiar
with but aside from that there are not many other US companies I saw selling
their wares in Rwanda (there were other beverages including Pepsi, 7up Smirnoff,
and Corona, but I really think that was all). There are many US business models
in use, though, including the convenience store/gas station, the 24 hour grocery
store, internet/computer/copy centers, and interesting interpretations of fast
food (again see the food blog). One business that I would almost rather say I
hadn’t seen was the African Bagel Company, which I am pretty sure is owned by
American Hippies, who somehow rationalize the exploitation of a small Rwandan
workforce to make the most delicious doughnuts ever. Some of the many problems
here: it was behind a closed gate, and the only Rwandans there were kept in the
kitchen, and only other hippies were welcomed here. A bad experience personally
and business-wise, but again awesome doughnuts.
So what
products are popular in Rwanda? Anything made in China or anywhere else in Asia
seems to be the answer. Almost all of the food and groceries are relatively
locally sourced, but any household good or durable good seems to come from
Asia, especially Japan, Korea or China. Most of the cars and busses are Toyotas
(like 90%) followed in a very distant second place by Kia, only because many of
the larger busses are Kias, after that it is an even mix of every other brand
of car in the world from Acura to Volkswagen. LG has the biggest appliance
presence from what I saw. Otherwise I think all the little things you buy
everyday like plastics, furniture, toys, and such were mostly made in China.
The best
way for you to see the Western influence that is coming through in shopping
would probably be to look at the biggest retailer’s website (http://www.nakumatt.net/). Nakumatt is the largest store chain
in Kigali, but based in Kenya, is pretty much the Wal*Mart of the region.
Similar to the Wal*Mart empire most of the stuff for sale is made in China and
un-unique, but it is interesting to see this type of store thriving in such a
different culture.
I guess I
can summarize my experience this way, I was very nervous about going. I was
concerned about everything from the long flight to if I would like the food.
The food turned out to be great, I loved the place we stayed, the city was fun,
and the countryside was beautiful. I would say the flight time was not the best
experience, especially the 2 hour delay at the gate in Brussels before coming
back to the US, but the flights were smooth and uneventful. So I guess as good
as could be expected. I would certainly go back if I have the time, and if for
any reason you are considering a trip to Rwanda just go for it, you won’t be
sorry.
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| The End |
