President Kagame said that lack of political will and commitment is holding back Africa from achieving global sustainability targets. Photos/Urugwiro Village.
President Kagame says the African continent is yet to achieve its goals on the Global Sustainability Agenda, also known as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The United Nations agenda adopted in 2015 aims at ending poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all by 2030.
The Head of State, speaking on the first day of the 2025 Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), said that Africa is still lagging in achieving the set targets.
He attributed the lagging to a lack of political will which has put the continent in a disadvantaged position.
“Unfortunately, the global sustainability agenda, as it stands, has not yet delivered on its promise, particularly for Africa. Political commitments are not met with action, leaving us with endless debates and finger-pointing. Policy options are often not suitable for the realities of developing countries,” President Kagame told a gathering of global leaders in the UAE.
He pointed out that the stakes for Africa are quite high, mainly because the continent’s population is set to double by 2050, observing that the growth means that African economies must meet increased demands for water, food, energy, and jobs.
President Kagame says more efforts are needed for the African continent to catch up with the rest of the world.
“In this context, sustainability presents us with a dual challenge: We must fast-track development, while concurrently building a low-carbon economy. To achieve both goals, we have to adopt affordable, scalable, and economically viable technology. Rwanda’s approach to sustainability reflects this, with a focus on inclusion, resilience, and collaboration,” President Kagame said.
Highlighting what Rwanda is doing, he said the country has created a pro-business environment with tax benefits and simple innovation policies.
“We have also launched the Rwanda Innovation Fund to back disruptive companies and attract global capital. These principles have driven practical innovations in many sectors. We have digital platforms that give farmers access to real-time market data to inform their decisions,”
Among other things, President Kagame said that Rwanda has given a platform to companies with new ideas to come and start in the country, citing Zipline, a company that started in Rwanda, specializing in delivering medical supplies using drones, which is now valued at $4 billion, with operations across multiple continents.
Earlier on Tuesday, President Kagame joined Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of UAE, and invited Heads of State and Government, global dignitaries, policymakers and sustainability industry leaders for the Opening Ceremony of the ADSW 2025.
During the Opening, 11 winners of the 16th edition of the Zayed Sustainability Prize were recognized for their innovative sustainability solutions.
Spearheaded by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Masdar, ADSW is bringing together world leaders, business and civil society, sustainability industry leaders, scientists, innovators and other stakeholders for discussions aimed at addressing global challenges, advancing clean energy and accelerating sustainable socioeconomic progress.
With the theme: “The Nexus of Next. Supercharging Sustainable Progress”, the 2025 ADSW Summit is exploring how to leverage advanced technologies to deliver a resilient, inclusive and prosperous future. “In this context, sustainability presents us with a dual challenge: We must fast-track development, while concurrently building a low-carbon economy. To achieve both goals, we have to adopt affordable, scalable, and economically viable technology. Rwanda’s approach to sustainability reflects this, with a focus on inclusion, resilience, and collaboration,” President Kagame said.
Highlighting what Rwanda is doing, he said the country has created a pro-business environment with tax benefits and simple innovation policies.
“We have also launched the Rwanda Innovation Fund to back disruptive companies and attract global capital. These principles have driven practical innovations in many sectors. We have digital platforms that give farmers access to real-time market data to inform their decisions,”
Among other things, President Kagame said that Rwanda has given a platform to companies with new ideas to come and start in the country, citing Zipline, a company that started in Rwanda, specializing in delivering medical supplies using drones, which is now valued at $4 billion, with operations across multiple continents.
Earlier on Tuesday, President Kagame joined Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of UAE, and invited Heads of State and Government, global dignitaries, policymakers and sustainability industry leaders for the Opening Ceremony of the ADSW 2025.
During the Opening, 11 winners of the 16th edition of the Zayed Sustainability Prize were recognized for their innovative sustainability solutions.
Spearheaded by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Masdar, ADSW is bringing together world leaders, business and civil society, sustainability industry leaders, scientists, innovators and other stakeholders for discussions aimed at addressing global challenges, advancing clean energy and accelerating sustainable socioeconomic progress.
With the theme “The Nexus of Next. Supercharging Sustainable Progress”, the 2025 ADSW Summit is exploring how to leverage advanced technologies to deliver a resilient, inclusive and prosperous future.
On the country’s urbanisation efforts, President Kagame said that Rwanda has been able to cut energy use and emissions through smart Street lighting and intelligent traffic systems, while on the mobility front, investment has been made in electric motorcycles as well as adopting cashless payments for public transport.
“We are complementing these initiatives with tax incentives for electric vehicle adoption. But experience has taught us that while renewable energy and the digital Solutions are very vital, they are insufficient to drive Africa’s industrialisation,”
“For this we require energy that fuels large-scale manufacturing and production. Sustainability plans that neglect this obvious and pressing need, are asking Africa to constraint its development,”
President Kagame said that this is neither fair nor acceptable because it is a question of fairness and justice.
“The technologies we discuss must provide energy at scale, which is just as cost-effective as the alternatives. Nuclear energy is a viable option, as it offers a clean and reliable power source,”
“Rwanda is already taking active steps to prepare for small modular nuclear reactors as a major part of our future energy mix,” President Kagame said.
President Kagame said that Rwanda recognises that sustainable development is a collective effort and that no nation can do it alone.
“However, we must learn from the mistakes of the past and move Beyond political frameworks that keep us in a stalemate,” he said, adding that technological innovations necessitate pragmatic and result-driven partnerships.
“Ultimately, technology will depend and succeed where politics is falling and the failing in getting us to a sustainable and equitable future,” he said.
The head of state said that Rwanda is focusing on constructive partnerships such as one with the UAE, through the government accelerator program known as the One Million Coders initiative and the government experience exchange program.
“Our goal is to raise our people’s standards of living while keeping in harmony with nature. Like minds need to cooperate. Rwanda is open and prepared to collaborate with all partners who share this vision.” President Kagame said.
