Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente has reminded the youth that they are the foundation of the country’s development, urging them to showcase their potential.
The premier said this on Wednesday while addressing more than 3,000 youths that attended the 8th YouthConnekt Convention at Intare Conference Arena.
They included members of Itorero Urungano, while others are representatives from secondary schools and universities, and those from the Diaspora at least from 17 countries.
The convention also brought together young Rwandans working in security institutions.
"I want to remind you that the government of Rwanda regards you as the foundation of her development – there is no development without the youth,” said Ngirente in his address to the youths.
He added that: "For instance, 70% of our population are below 35 years. This confirms that youth are the basis of our country. As a matter of fact, there are many things this country has achieved because of the effort by the young people,” he said.
Participants at the YouthConnekt Convention yesterday. Dan Nsengiyumva.
The Convention’s main objective since inauguration in 2012 has been to give the youth a platform to showcase their potentials towards the Rwanda’s development.
The Prime Minister also urged youth to take advantage of the infrastructure in place to get the necessary skills in varied sectors to be able to play their rightful rule in national development.
"Under the government’s National Strategic Transformation (NST1), the youth shall continue to have a major role to play in the social and economic development,” the Premier said.
Essential meeting
Clinton Muhinda, a student from African Leadership University, told The New Times that the Convention is an opportunity for networking among the youth and where possible create partnerships and share knowledge.
"In this Convention we are able to discover different opportunities available for us and meet people who are in charge. It also helps us form networks that can be useful in the present and future,” he said.
Muhinda added that: "We also meet youth with good ideas like ours and hence look at a way of working together to implement them.”
Promise Mahanga, a student at the University of Rwanda in Geology, also said that: "This is an essential meeting for us, because we meet different champions in different fields whom we can learn from and dream bigger.”
Since its inauguration by President Paul Kagame in 2012, YouthConnect Convention has been attended by over 20,000 youth, and has among others led to the birth YouthConnekt Africa Summit in 2017.
The youths that took part in the YCC are expected to also take part in the two-day-long Umushyikirano 2019 that starts on Thursday at Kigali Convention Centre.