Like every part of Africa I have ever known, the drum has held profound significance since the beginning of time. In Rwanda, it is no different. In fact, it is the steady beat of the ingoma – the traditional Rwandan drum played during ceremonies and special occasions – that continues to echo in my mind these days. ALSO READ: Sanctions, sovereignty, and Rwanda: A small nation in the crosscurrents of global power The steady, rhythmic beat of that drum made from the Umuvumu tree and stretched cowhide reminds me that something wonderful and amazing is coming. Many would say that which is coming can be summed up in one word: transformation. But something tells me there is much more at stake than that. Rwanda is undergoing transformation In 2025 and 2026, Rwanda and its global potential have drawn unprecedented attention in the news and on the world stage. Last year, Rwanda signed a peace agreement that brought significant focus to the country, some of it was unwelcome. Although the spotlight has dimmed recently, no one doubts that it remains. Afterall, the world’s 24-hour news cycle is ever-changing. Clearly, these days, Africa as a whole is never far from the world’s gaze – for better or worse – but Rwanda, a country roughly the size of Maryland in the United States, is poised to command particular attention before the year ends or certainly by early next 2027. It was just a few months ago that the 2026 International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank held one of their yearly meetings in Washington, D.C. These two world-respected organizations brought together bankers, finance and development ministers. The private sector and civil society were also on hand to discuss the world’s economy, financial stability, poverty reduction and the general state of affairs globally. Similar meetings will repeat themselves in a few more months and for Rwanda, the reported collective outcome is expected to be the same – outstanding. As Rwanda’s New Times and other media outlets reported, the IMF and other authoritative sources ranked Rwanda the one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa with its gross domestic product (GDP) projected to expand to 7.2 per cent this year. Meanwhile, the population of Rwanda increased from 10.5 million in 2012 to 13.2 million in 2022, according to the national institute of statistics. The Worldometer puts the population at something closer to 14.9 million people. This means Rwanda, with a median age of around 20, is one of the most densely populated (and youngest) countries in mainland Africa. Umuco! (culture!) Culture (Umuco in Ikinyarwanda, pronounced ou-Moo-cho) can be a good thing. It ultimately defines who we are. It even tells us what we were and, perhaps more importantly, who we will become. This applies to all countries, all civilizations, past, present, and future. But keep in mind that culture, by itself, without questioning, investigation, and challenging, can be a not so good thing, even a devastating thing. Rwanda’s culture has been shaped and moulded since its diverse collection of people, originating out of the Bantu, first settled in the Great Lakes region thousands of years ago. The Great Bantu Migrations itself occurred over thousands of years after the first homo sapiens appeared in Africa about 300,000 years ago. Travelling on foot, it took centuries for Africa to become what it is today, and it was the Bantu, a collection of 400 distinct indigenous ethnic groups, who carried various cultures to the North, South, East and West. Rwanda was a recipient. From its royal tradition to its community service, to its storytelling, to its incredible art and dance, Rwanda’s culture is to be marvelled. More than that, the extended family and group gatherings that Rwanda’s culture portends brings forth the affirming of births, deaths, weddings, separations, and more. I found myself thinking that Rwanda’s culture is more than a sight to behold. Rwanda’s culture plays a leading role in everything. And then, I thought about the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The world’s ‘Modern-Day Phoenix’ Over a terrible 100-day period starting in April 1994, more than one million people were hunted down and systematically killed. ALSO READ: Why genocide ideology doesn’t dissolve three decades after dispersion of genocidaires Extremist leaders turned neighbours against neighbours and even family members against family members. When it was over, the country lay in ruin, shattered and devastated. No infrastructure, no food, no water and unimaginable trauma. The atrocities that were conducted were an offshoot and a classic example of culture being misused and abused. Instead of people bringing others together to celebrate and affirm culture, people were brought together in a horrific misuse and abuse of culture through brutality, sexual violence and mass slaughter. ALSO READ: Habyarimana's role in planning, implementing 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi But the genocide was not successful. It did not accomplish what genocides are intended to do. Rwanda remains a growing, thriving place where all people, all ethnic groups, come together as Rwandans. The spirit of the people and the spirit of the country remained. Now, 32 years later, Rwanda has risen out of ruin just like “the phoenix” -- the legendary immortal bird that is destroyed but does not perish. It merely rises again better than before. The phoenix represents rebirth and with it even greater “wisdom, radiance and resilience.” This is Rwanda – the world’s modern-day phoenix. Committed leadership It was 4 a.m. and I was in Istanbul, Turkey some years ago and I had just finished an intense activity with the United Nations. ALSO READ: Six years in Rwanda: What Paul Kagame has taught me about leadership I was seeing off my boss and making sure he caught his flight back to the U.S. We were standing inside the terminal at what was then Istanbul Atatürk Airport. My boss was the president and founder of a phenomenally successful and highly well-known American-based global organization. Seeking to use the time and fill our waiting time with conversation, I asked my boss a random question: “What would you say the organization needs most of all?” I thought he was going to say more money or more volunteers or simply more resources, but he surprised me. “We need committed leadership.” My immediate reaction was to nod affirmatively, although it had not sunk into what he was really talking about. As the months and years passed, I came to understand first-hand what my boss was saying on the pre-dawn morning before his flight. A consistent dedication to an organization’s goals, objectives, problem-solving, values and its employees is the best definition I have learned when it comes to “committed leadership.” With respect to Rwanda, above all other things I have witnessed in Europe, the Middle East, the Americas, Asia-Pacific and other parts of Africa, Rwanda has substantial “committed leadership.” When you visit the country, the commitment of leadership becomes apparent rather quickly. The order of things, the seriousness, the focus, the cleanliness, the honesty, the security, the engulfing feeling of peace, the genuine joy -- all are reflections of it. A unique, and special people The people of Rwanda are unique and special, but perhaps you have heard these words describe other people before. Of course, this can be said about Africans and the 55 countries where they live on the continent. Truly, in one way or another, these adjectives can be said about all people, everywhere on Earth. But when we examine the history of Earth and the multitudinous varieties of human beings, the land, and their cultures, none have the scar of a 100-day genocide that systematically murdered over a million people. Yet, within several decades of that tragedy, here we have a country that is not only surviving but thriving. How can that be? To my knowledge, no other country can claim this100-day, one million deaths that led to the “phoenix experience,” and no country would want to go through what Rwanda did that gave birth to that experience. The future ...the present, the vision British author and Anglican lay theologian C.S. Lewis said, “The present is the only time in which any duty can be done or any grace received.” American Agricultural chemist, botanist, inventor, educator, and born an enslaved George Washington Carver said, “Where there is no vision, there is no hope.” Both renowned men wrote and spoke words that neatly summarize Rwanda and fuel its future. In fact, they have summarized all countries everywhere, from my perspective. Rwanda is balancing itself between the day-to-day and its future. You cannot have one without the other. You cannot have vision and hope without a focus in the present. Rwanda is carving itself out of a past unlike any others. War, mass killing, discrimination turned to hatred, and worse, have plagued almost every country on Earth. In this sense, Rwanda is an unwilling member of this “undesired club.” But there is a difference. There is something different, and even inimitable about Rwanda. Having travelled to other African countries and having collaborated with them all at some level, I can tell you there is something about Rwanda that causes one to pause. This is much more than its physical breathtaking beauty and well-earned moniker of “Land of a Thousand Hills.” It is the spirit of the place. You can feel it. It is positive, uplifting. It is welcoming, embracing. Most of all, it speaks of interconnectivity. It speaks of interrelatedness. It speaks of a “gathering place of all possibilities.” From its gender equality –- having the highest proportion of women in any legislative body at 61% -- to being the first country in the world to launch a nationwide drone delivery service network, and to, according to the World Bank ‘s index, Rwanda’s ease of doing business, Rwanda is in a class by itself. (It is ranked 38 out of 190 economies around the world which makes it the best country to do business in Africa with only Mauritius ahead of it at the number one spot.) That is why, in my view, Rwanda is not merely a small country located in the heart of Africa. Rwanda is the heart of Africa. So, it comes down to this. The transformation that is coming is not only about Rwanda’s transformation; it is about the entire continent of Africa’s transformation. The Ingoma beat that is coming from Rwanda is echoing throughout all of Africa. The weight of this cannot be diminished. As the world continues the second half of this year that can be best described as one of “twists and turns,” make no mistake, Africa will continue to be transformed, and Rwanda will continue to be a driving force for positive change, interestingly by its mere existence. The heart does not know what vital life-giving and life-growing effect it is having on the body. The heart simply beats. Something wonderful is coming. If the world continues to support Rwanda in its remarkable journey of rebuilding, the successful transformation of Rwanda and the African continent will continue to unfold. And as Africa realizes its full potential, the world itself will be transformed and enriched for the benefit of us all. The writer is an American communication professional who has travelled to and worked with Europe, Asia, North America, South America, the Caribbean, The Middle East and Africa. In Rwanda, he worked for the U.S. government and its Rwanda partners to further development goals and objectives in economic development, health, education, agriculture and more.
