AFRICA CHEAT SHEET

TACKLING AFRICA ONE COUNTRY AT A TIME

waramutse Gary,

We have 54 countries to go so lets start with Rwanda. Here’s a fun cheat sheet on what you need know about Rwanda. The list is not exhaustive but to get you going here’s a round up of culture, marketing, tech and the basics that take you from tourist to teacher.

There is a PDF offline version of this doc available below and feel free to reach out for any further insights.

@thatdesh

STOP 1: RWANDA

As Africa’s economies progress, opportunities are opening in sectors such as retailing, telecommunications, banking, infrastructure-related industries, resource-related businesses, and all along the agricultural value chain.

fact 🤯 telecom companies in Africa have

added 316 million subscribers since 2000.

that’s more than the entire U.S. population.

SO WHAT?

The door is open Gary. You don’t have to sit at the table right now. Just walk in and see what it’s about...

until you are hungry.

LET’S START WITH THE BASICS

Kigali is the captial and Rwanda is landlocked and situated in East Africa with Uganda and Tanzania at its borders. Religion and state are separate, and diverse religious groups are tolerated as long as they do not question or disturb the authority of the state.. The Catholic Church has lost its privileged role, which it enjoyed under the former regime. There is no discrimination against LGBTQI+ people and the government has signed the U.N. statement condemning violence against LGBTQI+ people, joining nine other African countries.

the people

There are 13.2M Rwandese with an annual growth rate of 2.3% and 40% of the population is between 13-24.

digital landscape

26% of the population are internet users with a 3% increase YOY. Naturally 96% access the internet via mobile.

No surprise that there are 690K Facebook users and 390K Instagram users as META leads the charge. Linkedin users (107K) are almost on par with Twitter users (162K) in Rwanda.

DIGITALREPORT

the issues

The Rwandan economy was completely devastated by war in 1990-1994. The genocide stemmed from discrimination and hatred by Hutus toward Tutsis.

To build a new and peaceful Rwanda after such a genocide between two groups is an enormous task. Rwanda has articulated a bold vision to become carbon-neutral by 2050. Digital innovation and entrepreneurship in the country are key focus areas for growth. Kagame has been president since 2000. The next presidential election should take place in 2024.

MOMENTS IN CULTURE

UNLOCKING CULTURAL INSIGHTS

Giants of africa

Giants of Africa was founded 20 years ago with the objective of enriching the lives of African youth through basketball, both on and off the court. Spotify teamed up with Giants of Africa in Kigali, Rwanda, to showcase a shared vision for the continent’s future through music and basketball.

WATCH VIDEO

YOUTH OF TODAY

At the start of 2023, 17.9 percent of Rwanda’s population lived in urban centres, while 82.1 percent lived in rural areas and the median age sits at 19. When it comes to music, Boomplay has a strong market share vs Spotify with 95M active monthly users across Africa

free music streaming

MTN Rwanda offers MusicTime, a pay-as-you-go music streaming service that charges by the minute to access both local and international music content at zero data cost. MTN customers can download the music app and can buy 120 minutes for around $0.20 or 300 minutes for $0.45.

BEER OF THE NATION

The most popular beer in Rwanda (outside of local brews) is Primus. Heineken distributes Primus. Rwanda joins Nigeria, Namibia, SA, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Ethiopia as local producers of Heineken in Africa. Bruce Melodie is currently the face of Primus with an audience size of 950K on Instagram

SIlicon KIGALI?

Rwanda has long placed technology and innovation at the heart of its policies to boost the country’s economic development whereby the government invested in the ICT infrastructure through 4G roll out across the country.

MASS Design Group is an international practice that built its largest office in Rwanda. Among its most recent and most impressive designs is a start-up hub called Norrsken Kigali House, commissioned by the Swedish Norrsken Foundation, which supports entrepreneurship globally.

The hub opened in December 2021 and with construction scheduled for completion by March 2023, the site is already being used by up to 600 entrepreneurs every day. It aims to become the continent’s biggest hub of entrepreneurs, attracting more than 1,000 workers a day.

Robots HELPING WITH COVID

Rwanda’s government has partnered with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Japan to deploy robots to reinforce its efforts against Covid-19. The new devices deployed at Nyarugenge district hospital were cutting-edge ultra violet light robots which would help in cleaning and disinfecting treatment centres, hospitals and places of mass gathering such as markets and offices to limit the spread of the virus.

The robots have unique features including lamps that emit ultraviolet lights destroying deadly microorganisms which might be missed during the manual cleaning process, helping to reduce infection rates for patients and health workers.

They also have the capacity to speedily clean and disinfect operating, labour and delivery, ICU and isolation discharge rooms as well as other indoor spaces. On average, one robot can disinfect a room in 32 minutes.

Rwanda already uses drones to deliver blood and enforce restrictions designed to slow the spread of COVID-19.

WHAT ABOUT INFLUENCERS CREATORS?

TRUSTED VOICES

Many local brands in the alcohol and tech space still lean into public figures and musicians for their marketing campaigns. However, there is a rise in “Influence For Good” whereby smaller creators and even farmers are using their loyal supporters to spread educational messaging.

influence for commerce

Kayumba is one of the most popular faces in Rwanda and is also the Chief Experience Officer for popular mobile phone company Techno Mobile.

Bruce (also the face of Primus Beer) is also one of the faces of Techno. The brand leverages OOH, Radio and Social Media to communicate deals whilst leaning into these public figures for a hyper local context.

Why is TECHNO so popular in emerging markets?

TECNO was the first brand to launch phones with dual SIM cards in Africa over a decade ago, while it also quickly pioneered enhanced camera solutions for Africans and the African market

influence for good

Sanitation and Hygiene Influencers are gaining popularity.

William Musoni spends his days working as a laborer. When he’s not working, he educates communities in Rwanda’s Eastern Province on good hygiene practices, with a special focus on handwashing.

As a mobilizer for community savings and loan associations, he also encourages people to invest in and use proper sanitation facilities and products.

Twitter remains an influential platform to drive discussions and shaping opinions online

forward momentum

So where is the focus from a tech and marketing perspective?

Many Rwandans in the electronics business buy products in China/Dubai using WhatsApp, another factor that shows how WhatsApp plays a significant role in E-commerce. WhatsApp also eased communication in schools and facilitated interactions between teachers and students during COVID but still retains its role.

e-commerce

Online sales in Africa are growing at around 25%, year-on-year, one of the highest rates in the world. 31% of Rwanda uses mobile money. Since its launch in 2019, Wasoko's revenues leaped from $2M (year 1) to a remarkable $48M in 2022 & serves 5000 informal traders in Rwanda alone. In 2022, Wasoko raised $125M in a Series B funding round, the largest ever for a non-fintech startup in Africa

CONNECTIONS

The cheapest smartphone costs $28 in Rwanda and a 1G data costs $1.25. MTN is the dominant player with 61.8% market share and then Airtel coming in at 38.2% MTN full suite offers Rwandans chance to not only communicate but transact (MoMo) and enjoy free music streaming.

WHAT ABOUT INFLUENCERS CREATORS?

creators to know

@visitrwanda

The official PR engine of Rwanda. It’s a platform for Rwanda to showcase its tourism attractions, cultural heritage, and investment opportunities to the whole world.

@BruceMelodie

One of the biggest and most influential artists and public figures in Rwanda and is the first entertainment billionaire (in Rwandan francs) with the launch of his TV network and record label

Queen Takes The Wheel

This former Miss Rwanda contestant is breaking boundaries as the 1st female car driver.

Watch Doccie here

CASE STUDY

#VisitRwanda: platform to showcase its tourism attractions, cultural heritage, & investment opportunities to the whole world.

One year after the partnership began, Rwanda’s tourism revenue increased by 17 per cent and tourists from Europe increased by 22 per cent.

The partnership, unveiled during FC Bayern’s first home game of the season, will see the club work specifically with Rwanda’s Ministry of Sports to set up a football academy to strengthen the development of football in the country. In addition, the Bundesliga champions will display Visit Rwanda branding on matchday LED boards at the club’s 75 000-seat Allianz Arena, and different activities will be organised to promote tourism and investment opportunities in Rwanda. Rwanda has signed similar partnerships with English Premier League side Arsenal and French giants Paris Saint-Germain, which the country’s President Paul Kagame said had returned “impressive dividends for local tourism”.

Rwanda has made significant progress in rebuilding its reputation following the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, through investing heavily in education, healthcare, and infrastructure. The country has become a leader in the African tech industry, and emerged as a popular tourist destination, with its vibrant culture and stunning natural scenery attracting visitors from around the world

ECONOMIC REPORT