Group photo: Participants at the training

The Rwanda Private Sector Federation (PSF), with the support from Trade Mark East Africa-Rwanda and in collaboration with Rwanda Standards Board (RSB) conducted training of Young Entrepreneurs on standards.

The training took place at Nobleza Hotel from29th to 30th March, 2017 and was attended by participants from the PSF Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs, especially those with running projects in the clusters of: food and beverages, manufacturing (cosmetics and soaps), construction (brick laying and tiles) and art and crafts (textile).

The training’s overall aim was to build the capacity of young entrepreneurs engaged in business operations in the above clusters in order to make them ready to harness opportunities provided by the preferential trade regimes within the East African Community and the wider market that arises with regional integration.

Rwanda has a population of around 11 million people (as of the National Institute of Statistics Report of 2015) and of which more than 70 percent are in the youth category. In this framework, the PSF reckons that with a view to becoming a middle income country by 2020, Rwanda needs those young people to become strong and sustainable entrepreneurs and leaders, and achieving that needs to ensure that the next generation of captains of the industry are well equipped with relevant business skills and knowledge.

The Private Sector Federation informed that a standards-based knowledge gap has been identified among the clusters of young entrepreneurs involved in business in Rwanda, more specifically in the sectors of food processing, manufacturing, art craft and construction. Young entrepreneurs stressed that they needed knowledge in standards setting, certification processes and other standardization services available that would contribute in enabling competitiveness of their products.

According to Trade Mark East Africa-Rwanda, lack of knowledge on standards is not only a challenge to business growth but also to market access:

“With limited knowledge and information on the standards component, young entrepreneurs are not only risking their businesses but also are barricaded to enjoy the benefits of regional integration especially the opportunities that come along with a wider market for their products. They can only enjoy those opportunities if their products meet the required or set standards in the country and region”. said Ms. Patience Mutesi, Country Director of Trade Mark East Africa-Rwanda.

In his remarks to participants, Mr. Raymond Murenzi Director General of RSB commended the initiative by the PSF and especially the Chamber of Young Enterpreneurs to include standards on their priority agenda:

“RSB commends the PSF and Chamber of Young Entrepreneurs commitment to including standardization on your agenda. We wish you to not only be standards users but also standards setters. Standards are set by the business community and for their own businesses. Standards are the only common language spoken and understood by the wide business community around the globe.  They are important tools to improve the quality of products and contribute in shaping the future of organizations.


Director General of RSB addressing Young Entrepreneurs at the opening of the training

During the two days, important topics were tackled and those included: how  are standards developed, types and benefits of standards, process to acquire product certification, publication of standards, access and relevant policies in place, food safety according to Hazard Analysis and critical Control Point (HACCP) and standards requirements on post-harvest handling practices.

At the closing of the training, participants expressed  their happiness to the program as it was an opportunity for awareness and building capacity in different areas of their interest to enable them improve the quality of their products, and in so doing pave the way to their business readiness to compete at national and international arena. They also testified that standards undoubtedly help reduce the cost of doing business through knowledge and technology transfer as well as certification of products.