President Paul Kagame in Sherm-el-Sheikh,Egypt: He said the continent is famous for its natural resources. But the value of human capital, people, exceeds all the oil and minerals in the continent #Africa2017YED
President Paul Kagame has arrived in Sherm-el-Sheikh, Egypt for the 2nd Africa Business Forum 2017 from December 7-9th and upon arrival, he attended the Young Entrepreneurs Day panel discussion.
According to Rwanda Presidency Twitter, the Young Entrepreneurs Day discussion will included Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, Tony Elumelu and two African entrepreneurs.
During the event, Kagame said that he has trust in the youth because they are a sure investment opportunity for the continent. “Young entrepreneurs are a sure bet,” he said adding that despite the continent having plenty of natural resources like oil and minerals, human resources are fundamental for Africa development.
However, the human resources cannot serve anything if they are now well managed.
“It isn’t about counting the number of human beings but rather looking at the potential they have and creating an environment for them to unleash their potential,” Kagame said.
Rwandan young entrepreneurs who attended the summit said that need to support young entrepreneurs is urgent. “We need to change the narrative around trusting and supporting entrepreneurs,” said ean Bosco Nzeyimana founder of Habona, a local company.
Sharing Rwandan experience on how to go about this, President Kagame said, ” We need to see how to scale up across the continent. In Rwanda we created a triangular model; knowledge, skills and institutions where you see technology at work,” he said.
“Young people and everyone involved, we need to up our game. We owe it to ourselves, communities and continent to work hard and keep trying. Let’s not fail to try. Trust needs to be earned and nurtured.”
The Africa Business Forum 2017 is organised by the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation of Egypt and the COMESA Regional Investment Agency (RIA), and brings together Heads of State and delegates from across Africa.
The Young Entrepreneurs Day (YED) due is a new addition to the forum designed to connect some of Africa’s most promising entrepreneurs and give them exposure to investors, incubators and accelerators.
Participants will also take part in workshops that will give them the skills and tools to scale up their businesses.
Both Kagame and Elumelu have been championing entrepreneurship and will be sharing their perspectives and engaging in an open platform with some of the upcoming leaders from across Africa.
Speakers at the event will also include Issam Chleuh, Rebecca Enonchong, VC4A’s Ben White and Wale Ayeni from IFC Ventures, the venture capital wing of the World Bank’s private sector arm.
