For any country to achieve meaningful development, it must promote local enterprise and innovation. This, apart from a country’s foreign exchange reserves, creates more jobs and cements economic growth. That is why it is vital for citizens and the government to work together to realise such goals and more so if the country is to inch closer to industrialisation.Therefore, instances such as those where City of Kigali delays a local innovator’s plans to train people and supply a locally-developed product should be avoided as it discourages creativity. This action has put the opportunities of over 200 youth at crossroads. The more the city authorities delay, the more it diminishes the chances for these disadvantaged youths to lead a better life. The spirit should be to accord all the necessary support to local innovators, especially since the government is promoting self-reliance among the population. But how will we become self-reliant if efforts geared towards achieving this goal are thwarted by the same institutions that ought to promote it? It is unfortunate for some government agencies and local authorities to frustrate efforts geared at fostering creativity and innovation because this hurts the economy in many ways. Jobs that would have been created will not materialise, income and taxes that would have been earned will be lost, and so forth. Do we need to see this happening? Where local innovators are supposed to fulfill certain conditions before their innovations are approved, the relevant bodies should make such requirements clear to avoid needless complaints and project delays. It is, therefore, upon every citizen, as well as government agencies and local authorities, to foster innovation and creativity if the country is to achieve its cultural and socio-economic goals.
