This year’s National Leadership Retreat (Umwiherero) set a new pace; instead of the usual three-day session, it was stretched to one-day short of a week.

It is obvious the agenda was hefty, since the time would be used to chart the country’s course for the next twelve months and beyond.

Service delivery and prudent management of the country’s resources were some of the key topics. But executing tasks to the satisfaction of the appointing authorities and beneficiaries, one needs to strictly adhere with the guidelines.

Achieving that would be a pipedream in the absence of good governance principles, the key to success. That is why Rwanda Governance Board has been a key cog in the country’s machinery and now its mandate has been expanded to also bring on board the private sector.

Bank of Kigali has been quick to realise that good corporate governance is necessary in service delivery. It is now promoting it by rewarding its clients who make the cut by giving them quicker and cheaper loans.

There is room for other major corporates to join the campaign to promote good governance and nothing does it better than giving incentives.

It is the quality of governance that has defined the economic development journey of this country, so why not duplicate it elsewhere?

Local leaders should be at the forefront of promoting good governance by providing exemplary service to the population. Then it will be easier for those they govern to follow suit.