The Economist sees Rwanda’s coming of age as a worrisome development in Africa

On October 23, The Economist published a story “Three places that dream of becoming Africa’s Singapore”, and the author warned that Rwanda, Kenya and Ghana’s plans to become financial hubs worry tax campaigners as they could be destructive.

Besides expressing concern that strategies adopted in order to create financial centers in Rwanda, Kenya and Ghana will not comply with the OECD-15% approved corporation tax rate, The Economist cast doubt on the chances of financial centers in those African countries, suggesting that “even with the lure of tax breaks, the odds seem stacked against the new centers.”

According to The Economist, no matter how much tax breaks and investment incentives, the financial centers in the three countries will stunt, because “nurturing this sort of [financial] ecosystem takes time, expertise and political will.” In other words, they implicitly suggested that Rwanda and the other two countries have no time to achieve what they have set out to do as they lack both technical expertise and determination to see their financial centers through.

Before I comment on this condescending prejudice, I would like to address the three factors – time, expertise and political will – that they imagine might hinder the establishment of the Kigali International Financial Centre (KIFC), in Rwanda, or plans to create financial centers in other African countries.

First of all, the author of the article is aware that it took more than 100 years for London to reach its current level in terms of financial center services. So, similarly, Rwanda should also be allowed time to implement its plan calmly. But unfortunately, from the paternalistic perspective of Westerners which justifies their neocolonial interferences, Rwanda has no time to experiment its ideas, because in the Western-dominated world order, no one else has neither time nor right to think for themselves, find their way, make mistakes, improve what is not right, and build their capabilities. This is simply a privilege that is the preserve of people in a few countries in the northern hemisphere.

With regard to lack of expertise, if the writer of The Economist was thoughtful about their description of the spectacle of “jet-setting financiers [who] have spread the gospel of free-flowing capital and low taxes through consultancy and reports and study trips”, he or she would have noticed that countries admired for their strong financial centers are the ones that Rwanda sought for partnership to help set up the KKIFC. Unless they want to tell us that unlike Belgium, Luxembourg or Morocco, which managed to achieve their financial centers without expertise, for Sub-Saharan Africa expertise is an absolute necessity.

With regard to political will, The Economist acknowledged that Rwanda “has passed new laws to encourage investments and signed agreements with financial centers”, “has strengthened its money-laundering laws”, and has promised that investments will be “clean and compliant with global standards.” If this is not political will enough, what more does The Economist propose Rwanda should do?

The political subtext of The Economist's story accurately illustrates what President Paul Kagame said while addressing a town hall meeting with more than 600 university students, on September 20, a day after Rwanda’s High Court sentenced FLN leaders and fighters including Paul Rusesabagina for terrorist attacks that killed innocent civilians.

Kagame said: “Western media reflects how the West sees Rwanda and how they want to see Rwanda from their own perspective whether correctly or not.” “Sometimes they may criticize you for doing what they do, just because they think you are not entitled to do what they do.”

In response to such efforts to stir self-doubt and distract Rwanda’s ability to move forward, Kagame advised Rwandans to consider the West’s criticism, but always focus on what is good for them, and keep doing the right thing, the right way.