Raising African Global: Why Rwanda was chosen and what's next

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]Hello and a very warm welcome to the next episode of roots and wings Iwatchu.

[00:00:06]Today we are going to be exploring into lives. Remember roots and wings I watch we do exploring lives of randons living abroad and also foreigners from other countries currently living in Randa.

[00:00:17]It's a very inspiring time today cuz you know sometimes earlier back there I I just got a conversation with my friend and she gave me a quote in French saying that experience definitely meaning that a life without ank or maybe a loss is always a life without uh an experience.

[00:00:38]Today I'm going to be having two people on today's show of course and uh they are very inspiring through their commitment through their always the the experience that they have I believe that we're going to be learning a lot from it. On my left side I'm going to be seeing Autumn Mary.

[00:00:55]She's the founder of KGLFWD.

[00:00:58]welcome very much.

[00:00:59]>> Thank you. Oh, Kegali forward.

[00:01:01]>> Oh, Kegali forward. Thank you so much.

[00:01:03]And also on the other side, I do have Dr. Gaid Faraj who is the co-ounder and head of School of African Olympiad Academy. I believe for the parents of course they do know her him very much and also the he's been uh the dean at the African Leadership University. You can now imagine the contribution of education that he's making currently in Rand and also in Rand's education.

[00:01:26]Welcome to the both of you. Thank you so much.

[00:01:28]>> How have you been? We are definitely happy to be seeing eight years of commitment in another country from other countries, a country that is not even your country. Definitely. How does it feel in the first place?

[00:01:41]>> Um, you know, we both um come from backgrounds where we were very um committed to the idea of institution building and we tried that in our our country of birth. Um try to organize in our home communities. When we first moved to Rwanda together, it wasn't necessarily thinking about it as a permanent home, but very quickly we realized there was a lot of vision alignment between our personal values and the values of the country. And so it seemed like a place where we could build institutions uh even though we're in different sectors, our institutions or our long-term goals align um in terms of trying to build talent and then also change the narrative about that talent for the world. So it it it was very comfortable place to build.

[00:02:18]>> Interesting. How about you Adam? I believe that there was an experience or or maybe something unique that you've seen in Tonda that you wanted to explore into that.

[00:02:28]>> Yeah, I think it's been exciting. It has been, you know, at time the the challenging cuz it's constantly pushing yourself and at the same time it has also been an honor and to think about we're in a country and that is only 32 years old in this iteration of itself and to be able to contribute at the level at which we're contributing is again it's an honor and it's exciting and to be able to contribute and support that level of nation building.

[00:02:59]>> Interesting. And at what point did the did the relocation did it shift from a relocation to a long-term commitment?

[00:03:08]>> Oh, um, like I said, as soon as we started to see that there was values alignment, it wasn't something that happened overnight. When you first get to Rwanda, there are certain things that are that are visible strengths. So, you see how clean it is, how safe it is, how well organized it is. But the longer you stay here, you start to see the less visible strengths. you know, the the civic commitment, uh the discipline, the the national pride and and vision. And those are things that align very much with with our own personal values. And so it really started to feel like a comfortable place to invest long-term in terms of building institutions and seeing uh not just the rewards from the work that you do, but also the appreciation and being able to be aligned with the national vision. Um and so it was something that happened gradually over time, but very much something that kind of speaks to our heart.

[00:03:50]>> Yes. So even when when he left for other jobs to go back abroad in other places for about three three and a half years and I knew that I wasn't ready to leave Rwanda and I stayed because I knew that there was still work and still calling and still home to be here and so it just kept calling and keeping me.

[00:04:09]>> Yes. Uh I for coming to Rhonda I believe that you've been traveling to other countries of course. Yeah, right.

[00:04:17]>> Yeah. uh what gave you consistence to be choosing Randa year after year after you've reached in Randa?

[00:04:25]>> Yeah. So we lived in Maitius previous to this together and then before we met he lived in Tanzania for a very long time for about 13 years. And with Rwanda for me like the choosing of it and especially staying here even when Gaid had gone back was really the safety, the security but also when we talk about the the people and that relationship to society and the values see being in a place where people are accountable to the country and people are invested and see themselves as a growth and the process of the country and in a place where when we say Africa rising, Rwanda rising is Africa rising and to be able to see the audaciousness of the country and the the daringness to be able to go for the big things. It's so infectious in the best way and inspiring in terms of how it then also pushes you for your own visions and for the things that you want to do. So the things we want to do at Kegali Ford to think all of those things and to know that we're in a place where it works.

[00:05:36]>> Yes. And how has Rand's growth influenced your decision to be staying and also invest your work here?

[00:05:44]>> Well, you know, it's an interesting thing because Rwanda is also a very selfless country, right? they've had this very unique um situation of rebuilding themselves in front of the world in a very deliberate way, but they've also been very clear that they're trying to rebuild themselves to serve the greater continent. And so it allows us to be a part of kind of a pan-African movement by rooting our work here in Rwanda. And so that's part of what um has been the appeal to us, the idea that we can do work in Rwanda, but not just Rwanda benefits. And Rwanda is very clear that they want to be a hub um so that the entire continent um can can grow together. And so that's the part of the growth story that I think is really attractive to us.

[00:06:24]>> Uh for the for those in the diaspora who think relocation is temporary, what does it mean to build a sustainable life as the one that you built of course and impact on the continent.

[00:06:37]>> Yeah. So I think one of the things always in life and probably for us in general is always thinking about the saying of Native Americans and indigenous people in the states that say you think of your impact on this earth for seven generations, >> right? And there's many cultures around the world that think in that way. And so meaning like we're on the fastest growing continent when it comes to the having the fastest growing youth population. We're in a place that is projected to have 2.5 billion people by 2050. It is the fastest growing urbanizing region in the world. And so anything that you're doing and building cannot just be for right now and right here. It has to be bigger than just yourself. And it has to be bigger than just this moment. So when we talk about sustainable and impactful, we have to be thinking of the solutions not just for today but how those can also have the longevity or at least be the catalyst for the ones for the future. And so when I think about sustainable and legacy and impact, I think those are the things and looking to see whether it's in Rwanda with, you know, Rwanda's vision 2050 or if you're going to another country, then seeing do they have something that is comparable to that and how is what it is that you want to do personally and professionally in that country aligned with that vision supporting or contributing to that larger vision.

[00:08:02]>> Definitely. Uh Miss Odm as a direct question of curiosity where do you want to see Kaggali FWD in 5 years to come?

[00:08:10]>> How where do I want to see Kali?

[00:08:12]>> Where do you do you want to see Kali FWD your company? Oh, Kali Forward.

[00:08:16]>> H >> I actually want to see the work of Ki forward be so impactful and to do its job so well that we are not needed in the same way that we were needed when it was a thought or idea around being able to transform and expand the narrative of Africa, the narrative of Rwanda and thereby Africa. that what we've done and what our other counterparts and our colleagues across comms are doing that we're not needed in the same way we are today that that then will change and we'll be able to pivot and have to do it in a different way.

[00:08:53]>> Exactly. Thank you so much. My next questions are going to be going to directly to Dr. Gary because he's uh more invested in education and today's topic is going to be a beat in education as for you you've been contributing from LU as the dean now to the African Olympian academy. What definitely drives you to your uproach to institution building in Africa?

[00:09:16]>> Well um you know as Autumn just mentioned you know it's it's the youngest continent in the world. So we have this huge uh youth demographic that's coming up and it's also a huge um resource for the continent. And so by being in the education field, building institutions that help um develop that talent, nurture that talent, um it's a contribution to the long-term growth of the continent. And again, Rwanda has created itself as a knowledge hub. So it's created a very um open environment for people to build schools, schools like African Leadership University, like the African Olympiad Academy.

[00:09:48]>> And so it creates an opportunity to contribute to the growth of the rest of the continent by bringing students in.

[00:09:53]Um, building a Panaffrican institution like AOA allows us to attract the top math and STEM talent from around the continent, which will eventually go back and develop their own communities, their own countries. Uh, but also it gives them uh an interest and a stake in Rwanda as well. They get to see an Africa that works. They get to participate in in this community, in this culture. Um, and so that's why, you know, I'm really vested in in building education here in Rwanda because I know that it has a broader impact than just on this community. Mhm. When you look at these universities and also African Academy, you see that the quality of education that the students are receiving daytoday, especially in the African leadership university, it's definitely different from maybe other universities in Rander or maybe in Africa. What does it take to build systems that produce globally competitive African talent?

[00:10:48]Um well first it just takes building institutions like that the talent is there right we have tons of talent uh across the continent we need to build better ecosystems to find that talent and then to nurture and develop it and that's what we're trying to do with AOA for example we uh work very closely with the Rwanda Olympiad Foundation um last year they screened over 60,000 students from across 900 high schools just here in Rwanda um and from that we're able to filter down and kind of find the the top talent within math and STEM But what it takes is um and this goes back a little bit to your your question about diaspora. It takes people who are not just coming as visitors but who are really invested long-term in institution building both whether you are a Rwanda returning if you're a foreigner coming here or if you're Rwanda that that grew up here. You know what is your interest in building long-term institutions for the growth and development of the continent not just for your own personal gain. Um and that's what it really takes to build institutions. People need to have a vision beyond themselves. Mhm. Uh what lessons from your journey maybe in the ALU and also the AOA uh can help strengthen Africa's education systems?

[00:11:56]>> Well, I think you know two things stand out about that. One is that we need to stop trying to cut and paste from the west and build uniquely African solutions for for the African challenges that we have too often. Um and this is why we've had challenges with education in the past. The reality is um when a lot of African countries got their independence, they just took over the colonial education systems that were there and they didn't do a whole lot to transform those and they weren't really fit for purpose for Africa's development. And so we need to build unique models that are framed around addressing Africa's challenges. Um the second piece is that people need to recognize that education is a public good. It's an investment in the future uh of the country. And so we need to be very wary of people who are trying to come in and sell education as a product, >> right? Um people who are trying to sell education as a product are more focused on how they can generate returns for themselves or for their shareholders more than really nurturing and developing that talent and and keeping it home. And I I think the last thing is that we really need to uh reshape and this is where organizations like Kali Ford are really important. We need to reshape the narrative about what success looks like, right? A successful young person isn't one who gets a scholarship to go to the West. Although, you know, that that's perfectly fine, but a successful young person is a person who really has a strong sense of identity.

[00:13:14]So, if they do go to the West, they still remain rooted in purpose and understanding that they're going there um almost like a supply run. They're going there to pick up a degree, to get access to resources so they can come back and contribute to the growth and development of the continent. Mhm. How do you surrender positioning itself uh as a long-term hub for academic excellence and and innovation?

[00:13:36]>> I I think they're doing a a great job.

[00:13:38]Like I said, they're very clear um and and purpose-minded in saying we want to be a hub, an education hub, not just to serve Rwanda, but to serve the broader continent. Again, when we talk about instant institution building, for example, you need strong systems, you need strong infrastructure, you need a safe environment. Rwanda provides all of those and invites the rest of the continent to come in and build institution here. And so I think they're doing a really good job of positioning themselves particularly as they kind of lean into um emerging technology, as they lean into education, they lean into um fintech. And so they're saying, "Hey, we want to be a hub that allows the rest of the continent to grow quickly. Rely on us, rely on our talent pool, rely on our infrastructure so you can build systems that serve the rest of the continent." So I think right now Rwanda's doing an excellent job positioning themselves for the future.

[00:14:24]Yes. For the people who know African Olympiad Academy before it was named, it had another name, right?

[00:14:32]>> As a school.

[00:14:33]>> Yes.

[00:14:34]>> Uh it was a different There's the >> Oh, it was a different school.

[00:14:36]>> It was a different school. Okay. So, African Olympiad Academy is brand new.

[00:14:39]We just took our first cohort of students in September of 2025. We started with 30 students from eight different African countries.

[00:14:46]>> Oh, interesting. But it grows out of the Rwanda Olympiad uh foundation which was the Rwanda Olympiad program here that was doing math camps to train students to go participate in the Panaffrican Math Olympiad or the International Math Olympiads.

[00:14:59]>> Oh definitely. Now the the the quality of education maybe the the system of education is a bit different from the ones that was there before.

[00:15:08]>> Yes.

[00:15:08]>> Yes.

[00:15:09]>> Interesting. And now for you Odam. Uh your work is centered more in communication, public relations and narrative building. How important is storytelling in shaping how the world sees Africa? And also Randa in particular.

[00:15:24]>> Yeah, it's everything. It's just like when our parents tell us, you know, that your reputation precedes you before you walk into a room and how you carry, you know, yourself and the family name. So it is everything the reputation and how the world knows you. The difference is is that now we're living in a time where for the first time the whole world is seeing Africa from firsthand citizenship journalism whether that is on social media or whether that is now our platforms that are here can reach the rest of the world you know and everybody can now watch what is on RBA through the YouTube and through all the other platforms and so now you have the world being able to see it firsthand from people here being able to tell their own stories and So Malcolm X has a quote that says the most powerful entity in the world is media or that media is the most powerful entity in the world. It has the power to make the guilty look innocent and the innocents look guilty.

[00:16:21]>> And so it is essentially our duty to tell our own stories, right? It is our duty that when they say until we tell our own stories that the story of the line will never be told, right? It'll always be told from the hunter's view.

[00:16:33]And we can't sit and expect that those who created the biased media or those who profit from the biased media to come and correct it. That we can't wait for them to bring those solutions. It's up to us. And those of us who work in media and communications, whether it's on my side in PR or your side as journalism, we have to see the work that we're doing as more than just the work for the client or for the media house, but that what we're doing is actually contributing to how the world sees Africa.

[00:17:05]>> Uh people may ask themselves and also as myself, I'm asking myself the same question. um what gaps did you see in African storytelling that pushed you to be do investing in the work of storytelling and and also communication?

[00:17:20]>> Yeah. Well, first of all, biased narratives for all of us as African people around the world. So whether that's us as African-Americans in the States or African peoples in the global south in Brazil or wherever else around the world, it's the same. We're all experiencing the same biased media. And so even knowing that firsthand as an, you know, a person of African descent who grew up in the US, I know the impact of that and I've seen the levels of the bias that exists in mainstream media or how our stories, whether it's been the films that, you know, our storytellers want to tell or whether it's been amplifying the work being done that they don't make it to the forefront and they don't. It takes us telling our positive stories 10,000 more times to negate that one negative story. And so being here when I arrived, I felt like there were a lot of popcorn stories where like here was this one amazing fact. Be it that zipline was transporting, you know, blood for the first time by dr by drone or be it the number of women in parliament, but that there weren't always the larger narrative. And so we had those we look at as like sentences.

[00:18:32]They're standalone, but we want to look at how do you put all of those sentences together to create the story, to create the narrative. And that's part of what I felt was missing in some of the places um or where we could always improve and build on and work together more. And so that's how we like to approach the storytelling is not just this one standout thing. How do we see the larger picture so that people understand what was the context that was created and that was happening that this country had in place that allowed that phenomenal that phenomenon to exist and happen?

[00:19:05]>> Interesting. And how has being best in Rander influenced what you want to shape globally?

[00:19:12]>> Yeah, I think one of the examples is how we've gotten from Kgalli forward into tourism. And it's funny because when we first moved, Gay kept bringing it up.

[00:19:21]I'm like, well, no, I do PR. We do communications and it's to the point that when you're living on this continent and in emerging markets, how you sometimes need to be more agile and flexible to what the need is.

[00:19:33]>> And so, we really came to see at Kgalli Ford that if you want to be able to shift and expand what people think of places, they need to come see it and expand and experience it firsthand, especially Rwanda. And so I think that's one of the ways because then it got us into being able to do niche groups of and cultural exchanges of people coming and seeing that as a way of also communicating globally is bringing people to have that experience.

[00:20:00]>> Sure. Uh in your view, what makes Rand's story very unique and how can it be better amplified on the global stage?

[00:20:08]>> I think put very simply that Rwanda works. It is a place that works and it is a place that is doing its best to work for today and for tomorrow.

[00:20:19]>> Interesting. Thank you so much. Uh our gorgeous on partnership and purpose and also impact as a couple cuz you moved in as a couple from uh from your home country now coming to Rand. You're both building in different but complimentary fields education and communications. How do your mission intersect?

[00:20:37]>> Yeah. Well, you know, I I I touched on this briefly, but the way in which our missions intersect is that I'm trying to really focus on building institution that identifies young talent, nurtures that talent, um, and and puts that talent >> to work for the continent.

[00:20:56]>> Yes.

[00:20:56]>> Um, I think what what Autumn's doing is helping to amplify that story because too often people look at the continent, for example, and they say, "Oh, they're good at culture. They can make music.

[00:21:05]They can do fashion." And we've built a STEM school. We're saying no, Africans also have a deep tradition in math and science. And so she's helping amplify that story while we nurture that talent.

[00:21:16]And so I think there are a lot of parallels between the work that we're doing, a lot of synergy.

[00:21:19]>> Yeah.

[00:21:20]>> Sure.

[00:21:20]>> And every institution needs to be able to tell its story and needs to be able to amplify it. And also for us and the way that we look at education institution building around it is like the work that we do with Rwanda Communications Network and bringing together professionals within the industry and from young students to senior level professionals and so also how we do capacity building for comms and creatives.

[00:21:48]>> Yes. Uh how do you align your individual work with a shared vision or for the impact in Ronda?

[00:21:56]Yeah, I think it goes back to like what we've like us being raised around nation building and nation building specifically for pan and African nations and what that looks like and I that's what ties us together >> individually as a family >> and then how everything that we do and how we approach from our personal principles of how we live individually as our family and then the work we do in the world that has to be the foundation.

[00:22:23]>> Yes. Yes. And uh what does it mean to contribute not as just professionals but as long-term partners in the country's growth?

[00:22:31]>> Well, you know, one of the things that I think we both appreciate about Rwanda is that uh Rwanda didn't need us, right? Uh they didn't need us, but they made space for us. Um they made space for us. They welcomed us. They encouraged us. And that has made it uh feel like home. And that has made >> our work together uh more more meaningful on a personal level. Um and that's you know part of what has led to us kind of wanting to be more vested here long term.

[00:22:59]>> Do you see Rand as a launch pad for the African for for influencing broader African and global systems and how?

[00:23:07]>> Absolutely. Yeah. Absolutely. I think when we talk about Rwanda being a proof of concept country, we have so many examples of countries that not countries, companies who have come here to show that this can work and to use what they're able to produce here as that proof of concept to then be able to go scale and take it out to the rest of the continent or even the rest of the world.

[00:23:32]>> And so, and that's exactly why we built AOA here. the Rwanda Olympiad Foundation itself um created a great model for Olympiad programs that the continent can use as a template. And so we're trying to go out and help build Olympiad programs in other countries. And so we have a program called the program incubator, for example, where we've gone to Liberia, Sierra Leon, Malawi, Maitius, and Ethiopia this year and said, "Hey, this is what we've been able to build in Rwanda. why don't you borrow this model and try and build a national Olympiad program in your country because unfortunately most countries in Africa are not really active in the Olympiad space which means they're missing an opportunity to develop their math and STEM talent and so Rwanda has been a great um sandbox for us to build an institution to build a model that can then be replicated across the continent.

[00:24:15]>> Yeah. I just want to say I think also with Rwanda also is not just being a launchpad for like sending out but also it's calling in and so it has where we say it's made space and home is not just for us moving but when we look at the number of African nationals from other countries who have been moving here when we look at the calling in that it is doing of experts from across the continent and the world uh as well as homegrown talent to build up its systems and like all of the different uh areas that it is building in from education to medicine to everything else right now tech that it's also a calling in as well as a launching out so that this can be an example for the world.

[00:24:59]>> Sure. Sure. Uh you've earlier mentioned that Ronda works but definitely you've been even mentioning some of the maybe the positive impacts or the positive things that attract many people into the country. But what makes Rand a place where the the long-term and sustainable impact is possible in your point of view? Of course.

[00:25:22]>> Um I think there's a one of the main things that makes it possible is the fact that there is a real um sense of vision that trickles down throughout various levels of government institutions, the private sector. like everybody wants to see Rwanda grow and succeed in a particular way that you don't necessarily experience when you're in other countries or other communities and because of that people want to encourage talent development. They want to embrace that talent. So to Autumn's point that a lot of other African nationals have kind of migrated to Rwanda to be part of that growth. It's because Rwanda welcomes it just like they didn't need us. They didn't need that other talent. But if that talent wants to come and build, they'll welcome it and create space for them as well. And that is why I think uh Rwanda is a great place to kind of take advantage of this talent uh pool.

[00:26:14]>> Sure. We are closely coming to our end.

[00:26:17]But as the last question, when people look at your journey years from now, what do you want them to see or even learn from your decision of uh permanently being in Randa, investing in Randa in education, in communications and public relations?

[00:26:34]more especially for the young people because I know that there are there going to be more of them trying to imitate what you did.

[00:26:40]>> Yeah.

[00:26:43]>> Okay. Give me a second on that one.

[00:26:45]>> I mean for for me it's kind of easy. In 20 years I hope that the institutions that we build are continuing to have impact and and no one needs to know who we were or uh know our names or anything but it's about having a lasting impact through the contribution that you you make to the institutions.

[00:27:00]>> Yes. Yes. How about you?

[00:27:06]I really hope that is that part of what we said earlier of how that contributes to the vision of the country and that as we see more people even from the states moving abroad right now that they take an entry point that is in alignment of the countries that they're moving to and really being able to contribute in that sustainable way. So then what we see is as the world is becoming more and more global that it is the world seeing that vision helping to push that vision and then it's almost like a cycle right then it's pushing back out into the continent and you're seeing others being inspired by it so that yes it's not about us but it's about maybe the pieces that people take from it versus our names or who did that.

[00:27:48]>> Yes. Thank you so much Autumn and uh Dr. Gi for giving us your time, for giving us your advice, how you see Ronda and why you chose to invest in Ronda, why you chose you chose 8 years ago to be in Randon is still here in Ronda. Thank you so much.

[00:28:03]>> Thank you.

[00:28:03]>> Thank you for having me.

[00:28:04]>> Yes, that was 30 minutes with Odum Mary and her husband Dr. Gy Faraj who was formerly the dean at the African Leadership University and also the founder of Giggali Ford. Thank you so much for listening. Thank you so much for watching. Until next time, my name is Enerra Gladis and this is Roots and Wings a