Most people worldwide back in the day knew Rwanda as the country that experienced the terrible 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. But today, they not only know it as an African country that has not only recovered from its scars caused by the Genocide, but also one that has made astronomical strides in its development agenda. Rwanda is located in central part of Africa bordering Uganda in the north, Tanzania in the east, Democratic Republic of Congo in the west and Burundi in the south.

Rwandan’s development has mainly been due to the fact that there is very good leadership by His Excellence Paul Kagame.

I will allude to the example of grass-thatched houses also known as "Nyakatsi”. These houses were very common in Rwanda in the past due to the fact that people couldn’t afford building permanent houses. However, Rwanda has been able to evolve by eliminating these grass-thatched houses and having better ones built using sand, bricks, wood and iron sheets across the country.

In Rwanda’s urban, we see more complex structure like Rwanda’s tallest building - Kigali City Tower is - , and the phenomenal Kigali Convention Centre.

Secondly, according to reports, Rwanda has been declared one of the cleanest cities worldwide which shows that the people of Rwanda respect the environment of their country which then enabled them to keep it clean and disease-free. Additionally, Rwanda has been declared the safest city to travel at night worldwide, which means that it is free of thieves, murderers, and rapists, among others.

In terms of transport and communication, Rwanda is given a thumbs-up. When one travels through Rwanda and the deep rural areas, one realises that the roads are well built and have communication lines well fixed.

 In addition to all this, let us not forget the aspect of air transport in Rwanda. Rwanda has managed to establish their own airline called RwandAir which is not only comfortable but also affordable and flexible since it travel to places far and near carrying our flag high.

More so, Rwanda also has amazing and world known facilities like Kigali Convention Centre and Marriott Hotel, among others, which are well-known for holding important international meetings.

Let us not forget the aspect of culture. Rwanda’s traditional wear "umushanana” is a uniquely wear for Rwandans, just like the beautiful traditional dance.

The country’s tourism sector is another area that has developed exponentially, especially with the annual Kwita Izina ceremony and gorilla trekking generally.

Most importantly, Rwanda has been able to move on from its terrible past and focus on its present and remarkable future ahead. I invite the youth to embrace this vision for even a progressive Rwanda of all time.

The writer is an Senior Six Student, Nu-Vision High School Kigali