Kagame to appear on MTV youth show

A group of young people from African countries, yesterday, held an interview with President Paul Kagame at Village Urugwiro. It is part of an eight-series show to be aired on MTV Base in July this year. MTN and MTV Networks joined forces in a Pan-African multimedia campaign designed to inspire the youth by connecting them with some of the world’s most influential personalities. The panel of five young people from South Africa, Rwanda and Uganda interviewed the president on some key issues affecting them. Speaking to reporters after the interview, Tsatsi Rugege, 16, from South Africa, said that they asked Kagame questions ranging from politics to arts and culture. “I was amazed to meet him. He is a nice and humble person who is full of fun. I got an inspiration from him,” she said. Rugege added that the Head of State answered each question they asked without any difficulty. “I couldn’t believe that at my age, I would be able to interview the president, but it happened. I felt great to have a chat with such a prominent person,” she noted. Under the theme MTV Base Meets with MTN, young people from across Africa, will engage with political, business and cultural leaders. Herve Kimenyi, 27, from Rwanda, stressed that the discussion with President was quite interesting. “It was my first time to meet face to face with the President and he is a very friendly and straight to the point. He also a good listener,” he said. Kimenyi said they asked him questions about how he interacts with people on social networking sites. “He told us that if we have a dream or a purpose in life, we should fight for it as long as it doesn’t fall into illegal activities that can harm people, the community and the country. This gave me hope that there is somebody out there who cares a lot about what we do as young people,” Kimenyi explained. Sizwe Dhlomo, a presenter on MTV Base, stated that global icons are interviewed for the show and President Kagame was identified as one of them. “He is a very friendly person and he answered all of our questions and it was really great meeting with a prominent person like Kagame,” he said. The CEO of MTN Khaled Mikkawi said that the interview would provide young people with the opportunity to engage directly with decision-makers to address some of the key issues that affects them. “It’s the channel through which powerful leaders listen to the young people’s views and as well as give them advice since youth are future leaders of tomorrow,” he remarked. Other prominent people featuring in the series will be, amongst others; Liberian President Ellen, Johnson-Sirleaf, , South African politician and president of the African National Congress Youth League, Julius Malema. Ends