Best known today for the genocide that killed , of its people, Rwanda is, thanks to Kagame, quietly building a new reputation in corporate America - as a business-friendly nation that wants to become a model of private sector development in Africa. The year-old Kagame, a rail-thin, bespectacled former guerilla fighter who has led Rwanda since , lately has become an unlikely favorite of American CEOs. Last week, he had lunch at Google's campus in Mountain View, Ca. Last week, too, Terracom, Rwanda's leading phone company, hired an American-born CEO as it builds out what it says will be the fastest communications backbone in Africa.
Senior executives at the wireless firm Alltel Charts , the huge engineering and construction company Bechtel and clothing maker Columbia Sportswear Charts also have consulted with Rwandan officials. Why the attention to Rwanda, a land-locked country of about 9 million people about the size of of Maryland? It's no accident. Many of the corporate ties between the U. I met Ritchie and Cooper on a trip to Rwanda in with the evangelical minister and best-selling author Rick Warren.
Ritchie's not your typical midwestern businessman. He ran the world's largest commodities trading firm, broke a transcontinental speed record in his private plane, managed mission control for his friend and fellow adventurer, balloonist Steve Fossett, and, with his brother James, helped finance Afghan rebel fighters when they tried to overthrow the Taliban in the late s.
The Ritchies grew up in Afghanistan, but that's another story. Several years ago, Ritchie's daughter Maggie volunteered in Rwanda, after which he took a look for himself and came away very impressed. Rwanda is known as the "Land of a Thousand Hills" but it was not the lush landscape that appealed to Ritchie. He and Cooper toured the country and met government and business leaders. They decided that Kagame was open, honest, business-savvy and, unlike some African leaders, serious about fighting corruption.
They want to work. They want U. Coffee was the obvious place to start. Financed by the U. Notify me of new posts via email. Click to share on Twitter Opens in new window Click to share on Facebook Opens in new window Click to email this to a friend Opens in new window. Like this: Like Loading And I thought I was the sensible one. Thanks for setting me straight. Comments Cancel reply Enter your comment here Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:.
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