The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) will be held under the theme, “Delivering a Common Future: Connecting, Innovating, Transforming.” The summit is set to be preceded by meetings for representatives from Commonwealth networks for youth, women, civil society and business. ICT and innovation is definitely one of the key components to be discussed. Innovative startups will have a chance to interact with attendees to showcase what they do, as well as learn from participants. As preparations of the meeting carry on, The New Times talked to a number of leaders for different ICT startups, who shared their notions about the up-coming event. Yvette Uwimpaye, CEO and Founder of Murukali Online Market said that her e-commerce firm is set to showcase Made in Rwanda products that CHOGM attendees can buy, adding that, they are tallying up several others and offering discount so that anyone who can access their online e-store can spot and order the products to be delivered to their preferable destinations. She noted that they also seek to interact with the meeting’s attendees from different countries, and network with them to understand how their online stores work so that they can learn from them, hence attracting new customers and suppliers. Uwimpaye highlighted connecting with decision makers as another great opportunity especially for start-ups that need to scale up to other countries. She urged CHOGM organisers to create or update a platform where people will be able to access detailed information about individuals or organisations that will attend the meeting, declaring that it will ease the networking process and favour attendees’ time. Abdoulrahman Niyonizeye, Founder of SmartClass, an e-learning platform hasn’t secured a slot for the meeting yet, but has readied the documents that may be needed by investors who might get interested in working with them. He said they also expect the attendees’ delegations to visit their workplace since it is near Kigali Convention Centre, where part of the meeting will take place. “We have extensively worked on increasing our online visibility so that those who will search people in our sector can easily spot us,” added Niyonizeye, before he highlighted higher cost to attend the meeting as a challenge and urged the government to consider securing a slot for them. Diane Cyuzuzo, Founder of Afriduino said her firm has secured slots to attend CHOGM. She revealed that they are making better products so that they can represent Rwanda decently. “After Hanga Pitch Fest, we no longer work in the same way we used to. We have been enrolled in different training and have since improved the quality and appearance of our products. We still make lighting and Bluetooth players but with high quality. We hope to sell some during CHOGM, but we are making sure that they won’t cause any problems later,” she said. Cyuzuzo also noted that they also seek to interact with other innovators and potential investors from different countries so that they can exchange knowledge and bait some funding. Their challenge is the delay of raw materials that come from abroad which sometimes doesn’t favour their time. Angelo Charmant Igitego, CEO of Karisimbi Technology Solutions, a company which operates IvuliroTech, said they are set to mingle with investors and to showcase what they do during CHOGM. He revealed that they are finalising an investment readiness, adding that they also expect Rwanda Development Board to introduce them to individuals or companies that are interested in investing into the sector they belong to. Lack of detailed information about the meeting is currently their challenge although they hope to get a solution soon. Patrick Cyuzuzo, Founder of Imigongo Online Market said his company is looking forward to securing slots in the CHOGM business forum, so that they can showcase products by local Small and Medium Enterprises (SMES) that produce Made in Rwanda products. “We are adding more products and working on their digitalisation. That entails photographing the products and adding details a customer may need to know about them,” he said. Their challenge, he says, revolves around the high attendance fee for the meeting and hence will only attend the CHOGM business forum.
