Rwanda’s strategic initiatives and partnerships are positioning it as a pivotal hub for software development, not just for Africa but for the global market.
This positioning has led German Software Giant- MaibornWolff, teaming up with Nigerian leading gaming studio to open a regional center that will develop and employ top-tier software talent and services in Rwanda for the Germany and Europe markets. The partnership has culminated in the launch of the Ojemba Palace in Kigali.
Ojemba is building world-class teams of African programmers to develop and run software for European companies from Rwanda. According to it’s CEO, Hugo Obi, “Ojemba is providing a solution by connecting the two through the software powerhouse MaibornWolff,”.
Ojemba’s entry in the Rwandan market finds the country at a pivotal point of developing local talent and practical skills in software development beyond what students can get in the normal school’s curriculum setting. Supported by donors, Rwanda established of the Rwanda Coding Academy (RCA) in 2019 to start grooming this talent at an early stage.
The academy, which provides hand-on skills, recruits the best students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects from ‘O’ Level National Examinations and trains them into software engineers, software programmers, embedded systems, and cyber security technicians.
Every year, the academy graduates over 60 students sending them on the local and international markets for direct employment or advanced studies.
With the increase demand for hands-on skills in software engineering, the academy recently announced plans of building a new facility to accommodate more student’s intakes to 180 per year.
Rwanda has also been a country of interest for the German private sector technology investors who have opened a local company- TestSolutions- a software testing and quality assurance company that opened in 2022 with a sole purpose of testing software for the European market.
Andela, the developer outsourcing company founded in Nigeria, plans to make a sizable investment to make Rwanda the Pan-African technology hub in the next five years.
The company trains coders at no cost and after success exhibition of innovation and team work skills, recruits are employed to work on projects for global software consumers and companies such as Mastercard Labs, Viacom, GitHub, Gusto, Microsoft and IBM.
In 2018, the company announced plans to focus on two flagship programs- including: ‘Andela Learning Community’ and ‘Andela Fellowship’- to respectively grow local skills and talent between 500 and 1000 world-class software developers in Rwanda within the first five years of their operations in Rwanda.
Students who have undergone through these programs software engineering programs say that they are making a difference in developing software that improve live of Rwandans and beyond.
“I am currently pursuing further studies at African Leadership University while working at the Rwanda Social Security Board (RSSB) Digital Factory to create interactive information platforms that enable Rwandans to know more about their social security and pension.” says Liberiste Ntwari, a former RCA graduate.
The Rwandan government frequently emphasizes the private sector’s critical contribution to the nation’s development, underscoring its significance in driving economic growth and innovation.
Alex Ntare, the Chairman of the Private Sector Federation ICT Chambers said that the Ojemba business adds to the existing 25 software companies in Rwanda to date but with a specialty to build talent and create jobs for software developers to meet the 15,000 skills demand gap and market demand in Germany
Ntare said that this is an opportunity for the private to create jobs and incomes for Rwandans who are talented and don’t have to travel abroad to earn a living off their skills.
“We don’t have to travel out. We can work here, stay here and travel through bits and atoms,” He said.
According to The German Ambassador to Rwanda, Heike Uta Dettmann, The German private sector’s recognition of Rwanda’s abundant opportunities is a testament to the country’s promising investment climate.
“The importance of the private sector in the development of the transformation process of Rwanda is often stressed by the Rwandan government and I think it’s an extremely strong point in our relationship that the German private sector is recognizing the opportunities that this fantastic land (Rwanda) offers,” He remarked.
The Ojemba program is currently free to join by applying online. Currently the Ojemba program in Rwanda has graduated its first cohort and is recruiting the second batch. Cynthia Ikirezi Ndiramiye is a recent graduate of the seven-month cohort and training before becoming one of the first 26 Ojemba employees in Rwanda.
“The training program at Ojemba is very intense and it requires a determination and commitment. My dream is to become the best coding guru and inspire others,” She said
Ojemba is exclusively based in Rwanda. Officials state that the country’s favorable investment climate attracted them, and as a people-oriented business, they were particularly impressed by the highly motivated individuals in Rwanda. These individuals have demonstrated exceptional competence and skill in meeting the challenges of software development.
