Kagame’s Rwanda is still Africa’s most inspiring success story

The president’s critics outside of Africa are failing to acknowledge the complexities of governing post-genocide. Born in southern Rwanda in 1957, Kagame’s parents fled the country during anti-Tutsi pogroms when he was two years old. International analysts and champions of democracy have not embraced Kagame’s atypical approach, often assessing Rwandan politics through a Western lens and thus missing the complexities of governing post-genocide. The beauty of Africa is that every 25 years, the population renews itself; over 70 percent of the Rwandan population is what we call the “Kagame Generation”: empowered, ambitious young people free from the prejudices that animated their parents. But Kagame is betting on the country’s MICE strategy and information communications technology and off-farm employment opportunities to absorb the 250,000 young people who enter the job market each year.