Visiting Rwanda was one of my unfulfilled bucket lists that I just ticked. The two things that attracted me to this amazing African country is the world famous Mountain Gorillas and the much spoken of post Genocide development of Rwanda.

I experienced both first hand with awe. In awe of this because of the seemingly well planned and orchestrated nation branding that seems to be in motion with amazing story telling at each and every touch point; be it the driver / guide, hotel staff or the trackers and guides, they all sang from the same hymn sheet, be it regarding the genocide, the development of the country, the administration or about their sustainable tourism.

The pride of being a ‘Rwandan’ as opposed to a ‘Hutu’ or ‘Tutsi’ was such a huge lesson for us Sri Lankans who always associate each other with our race or religion. Though non-Buddhists, the importance of promoting ‘forgiveness’ towards those who massacred their immediate family members is such a powerful lesson for us Buddhists, I thought.

The stories of how the community comes together on the last Saturday of each month to clean their town was proof enough with the cleanliness I experienced through out the country, be it Kigali or the smaller towns that we passed by. The beauty is that even the President partakes in this community activity. The leadership walks the talk in this country, it seems.

Surprised? Yes I was!

Then comes the stories surrounding the preservation and conservation of the Mountain Gorillas; a story in its own right. Sri Lanka has so much to learn from the sustainable management of parks, surrounded by villages that benefit from Gorillas; their national treasure!

When we have been struggling to manage the human elephant conflict for decades, the strategies used by Rwandans seem so simple and yet so impactful. What’s working for this country is the vision of the leadership and the passion with which these ideals are being communicated to different audiences in one voice and with conviction which every Rwandan believes they should be evangelizing to the rest of the world through their tourism. They see the fruits of labor right in front of their eyes. So why stop telling their story to the world?

World watches with trepidation if this leadership will also follow the destructive pathways taken by the well known African Leaders or continue creating Rwanda the legacy of the African success story.

Only time will tell!