Africa-Press – Rwanda. Rwanda is ranked among the top 10 African countries in the 2023 Global Soft Power Index, released by Brand Finance, a leading independent brand valuation and strategy consultancy.
The index measures the strength and appeal of a country’s soft power assets, including its cultural heritage, education, governance, and global reputation.
In an announcement during the annual Global Soft Power Summit, held in London, England, on March 2, Rwanda ranked seventh in Africa and 85th globally with a score of 36.2 per cent.
Egypt, South Africa, Morocco, Mauritius, Seychelles, Tunisia, Rwanda, Algeria, Ivory Coast and Ghana, respectively, are the top 10 African countries in soft power according to the world’s most comprehensive research study on perceptions of nation brands – the Global Soft Power Index.
Rwanda first appeared on the list in 2022 when it ranked 74th out of 120 countries with a score of 31.4 percent.
Rwanda has made significant progress in rebuilding its reputation following the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, through investing heavily in education, healthcare, and infrastructure. The country has become a leader in the African tech industry, and emerged as a popular tourist destination, with its vibrant culture and stunning natural scenery attracting visitors from around the world.
In all of the major and sub-indicators, Rwanda has made remarkable progress, which reflects the distinguished position the country has reached, making it one of the most advanced countries in Africa in terms of positive impact and good reputation.
Brand Finance suggests that The Global Soft Power Index incorporates a broad range of measures, which in combination provide a balanced and holistic assessment of nations’ presence, reputation, and impact on the world stage.
These include: familiarity or nation brands which people know, and have mental availability of, reputation, where they ask about the strength of a country’s positive reputation globally, influence or the degree to which a nation is seen to have influence in the respondent’s country as well as on the world stage, and finally, the performance on the core eight soft power pillars.
The eight core soft power pillars are: business and trade, governance, international relations, culture and heritage, media and communication, education and science, people and values, as well as a sustainable future.
According to Brand Finance, more than 111,000 interviews were conducted across the 101 countries surveyed.
This included most of the 121 nations included for assessment of the Global Soft Power Index, with the exception of countries which are either very small or where online surveys are challenging.
Rwanda’s impressive performance in the 2023 Global Soft Power Index is a testament to its progress in achieving economic and social development, promoting regional peace and stability, and building a positive global reputation. As the country continues on this path, it is poised to become an even more influential player in the African and global arenas.
Payday, a Kigali-based fintech banking startup, has launched a payment service that will enable Rwandans to pay for Starlink high-speed internet.
The neobank’s payment application is now available in beta, meaning that it is not yet publicly available.
Nonetheless, some users have already ordered Starlink routers through Payday’s programme – Kigali Beta.
However, its management said the full-fledged app will be going public in the coming weeks.
“A few years ago, I was writing the first lines of code that started the company in my apartment in Kigali, and now, we are supporting efforts to drive access to quality internet service that can also inspire different levels of innovation,” he said.
Starlink, a satellite-based internet venture owned by billionaire Elon Musk’s company SpaceX, started operation in Rwanda on February 22, delivering higher speed and lower latency broadband internet through its network of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites.
To start using Starlink, new subscribers are required to make an initial payment of Rwf620,000 to buy the hardware kit and are offered a 90-day trial.
The monthly subscription is Rwf48,000.
“When we relaunch in Rwanda, users on our app would be able to directly pay for their devices using any of our virtual Mastercard or Visa Card,” Ori said. “We’ve been helping SpaceX collect payments in Nigeria.”
Earlier this year, Payday was listed as one of the payment options for Starlink users in Nigeria, after SpaceX launched the service for the first time in Africa.
Rwanda is the first country in the East African region to offer Starlink services.
Starlink is expected to cover unserved or underserved villages in urban and suburban areas as well as rural areas, a development that will potentially boost the country’s internet penetration.
The Ministry of ICT and Innovation announced that schools are among the first institutions to benefit from the satellite-based internet. The initial plan, officials pointed out, is to pilot it in at least 500 schools.
Starlink has more than 2,000 satellites and plans to launch thousands more. The company offers high-speed, low-latency satellite internet service with download speeds between 100 megabits per second and 200 Mbps.
The service is available in more than 30 countries, mainly in North America and Europe.
Rwanda is the first country in the East African region to offer Starlink services.
Starlink, a satellite-based internet venture owned by billionaire Elon Musk’s company SpaceX, started operation in Rwanda on February 22
The neobank’s payment application is now available in beta, meaning that it is not yet publicly available.
Favour Ori, Payday’s Chief Executive Officer poses for a photo. To start using Starlink, new subscribers are required to make an initial payment of Rwf620,000 to buy the hardware kit and are offered a 90-day trial
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