They say wherever you look there is a business opportunity but for any business idea to succeed, there must be demand first and a supply gap to fill. Such was the case for Daniella Rusamaza, the founder of Iwacu Diaspora Network (IDN), a local company created in 2019 to help Rwandans abroad access local services with ease, efficiency and trust. In creating the company, she sought to bridge the gap that existed where members of the Rwandan diaspora who needed to do some activities back home and follow up on their projects but lacked the right people to help them fulfil their dreams. The 30-year-mother of one saw an opportunity and started the company which offers property management services, mortgage advisory, administrative services and other services that members of the Rwandan diaspora cannot easily get without being on the ground themselves. Rather than keeping her white-collar corporate job in a bank, Rusamaza, who holds a master’s degree in Project Management from the University of Kigali, took a risk to venture out there and start her own business. But it was from her bank job that she saw the opportunity and she has since not looked back. “The idea came while I was still working in a bank where I had a good opportunity to manage accounts of a big number of Rwandans in diaspora. “I discovered that most of them who invest especially in real estate often do not have someone on ground to take care of their properties especially with maintenance, rent, tenants, property tax or any other administrative services and it tends to be a burden. The urge to help them made me resign at the bank to create IDN,” says Rusamaza. Seizing the opportunity By starting the company, Rusamaza sought to address the challenges people living outside of Rwanda were facing whenever they needed a service back home but didn’t know how to go about or where to go, or simply would prefer to pay someone else to do the activity for them. In doing so, many encountered challenges, got ripped off or could not achieve whatever they wanted to do. Rusamaza seized the opportunity to bridge that gap since many Rwandans living abroad increasingly wanted someone to help them. Rusamaza , a former banker during the interview . Photo by Craish Bahizi. “Rwanda is a stable, secure country with a growing economy and upward mobility of its citizens. There are many Rwandans that have relocated to other countries to pursue successful careers or businesses. “They are proud of their motherland and want to participate in the success. They have the money, but often do not have the time or knowledge of how to get the necessary things done,” says Rusamaza. The ambitious businesswoman says from the market research she did, members of the diaspora are willing and able to pay for convenience, quality and to outsource time consuming tasks if somebody is willing to do them on their behalf. “My experience and my extensive network within Rwanda give IDN an opportunity to provide these services in a top-quality manner,” she says. Challenges As any other business, there are ups and downs, some days are good, others bad but when you are determined to do something, nothing can stand in your way, not even Covid-19. “The journey has been good so far. There are days where things are great, and there are days that are very challenging as with any job or business but the company is growing, and we try to do our job well in order to reach our clients ultimate goals,” “One of our key milestones is that we have so far assisted 43 Rwandans from Europe, America, Asia and Africa,” the former banker says. However, the feedback they get from the clients they have already served helps them to keep going. “We receive a lot of positive feedback and most of our clients have all come from word-of-mouth referrals, especially from the satisfied customers. This makes us feel as the go-to-person for the diaspora “Covid-19 has been an opportunity for us to serve a big number of diaspora as they couldn’t travel yet they needed local services,” Rusamaza says. Rusamaza hopes to turn her budding company IDN into one of the leading Investment firms in Rwanda where Rwandans in diaspora and foreigners could access all the necessary information on investment opportunities with ease as well as the management of those investments. “As IDN grows, we also plan to extend our network of partners and create employment opportunities for many,” the determined entrepreneur says. You can reach Daniella Rusamaza for more information on +250788899061or iwacudiasporanetwork@gmail.com
