I try to keep Living in Kigali updated with super fantastic information about all things related to the city, but man oh man, it’s hard to keep up! Luckily there are a variety of online resources at our disposal that aim to inform people about this great city on a variety of topics. Facebook groups are active, Rwandan services and government are very responsive on Twitter, and there are a plenty of informative and useful sites out there that will be helpful to Kigali residents.
I’m a lonely soul who works alone in Kigali. Just me and my computer. Occasionally I wander Kigali’s cafes in search of a decent internet connection, power outlets that work, a good-sized table, some coffee and food, and, most important, contact with the outside world. Spending too much time on my couch in front of my computer makes me a bit crazy. Seriously. Bomberiously.
I know Kigali is full of interesting people working on some very cool projects. I meet them at parties, I hear them talking about their amazing projects when I’m at cafes, I see creative things happening in the city and lonely ol’ me wants to be apart of it, dammit!
Enter kLab. As a website developer myself, other website-y and geek type things get me excited and kLab aims to be a hub for IT action and innovation in Kigali. The kLab tries to address the need for a space for people working in Kigali’s IT community. Somewhere for them to interact, share ideas, help each other out, and teach each other, all while forming a community willing to work together to push the IT industry in Rwanda forward. A place with reliable internet and a nice working environment to bring solo IT workers together to collaborate, network and push the IT industry forward. Coming from a partnership of public, private and educational institutions, kLab was born and exists as a not-for-profit workspace aimed at capacity building for the IT industry. It’s primarily funded by JICA (Japan’s version of USAid) and the Private Sector Federation and the Rwanda Development Board has donated the sixth floor of the Telecom Building, internet, power and all that practical stuff.
The location in Kacyiru is central and stunning. The view from kLab is one of the best I’ve seen in the city and the main office area has over a 180 degree view across the city. If you wander around the floor a bit, you can see Kigali from any angle and they even have an outside area with a foosball table! It’s pretty inspiring and I wonder if I’d spend more time staring at my computer screen or staring out the window.
Access to the kLab is free, you just have to apply as either a tenant or mentor. The idea is that mentors will be people more experienced in IT or business who will dedicate a portion of their time in the kLab to helping the tenants who could be students or recent grads with less experience in the field. To be accepted, tenants must have a project of some kind on the go – something they’re working on when they come to the workspace – so that it doesn’t turn into a glorified internet cafe. Tenants have to pitch their ideas to a membership group and their progress will be evaluated every several months.
Likewise, mentors have to fill in an application and then give a 5 minute pitch for why they’d be an asset to kLab’s tenants and they’re reassessed every few months by the tenants to make sure they’re still being useful. It all sounds a bit scary but the intention isn’t to be constantly kicking people out, but instead to keep things moving forward, helpful and creative.
The kLab people plan to have it open seven days a week, from early in the morning until late at night with a manager on at all times. Plus they’re hoping to use the space for events, movie nights and to lure IT people who are passing through Kigali in to give talks and share their knowledge. They plan on being the hub for all cutting edge IT
activity in Rwanda.
The view is amazing, the desks the perfect height, the office filled with creative people working on interesting projects, there will be a cafe serving up coffee, cold drinks and snacks… a perfect spot to help push Rwanda’s IT industry forward. If you’re in IT and plan on being in Kigali for awhile, you have to come check this space out. If you have a project to work on, apply as a tenant but if you’ve got experience to share then pitch yourself as a mentor and join in on what looks like it’ll be a really exciting thing for IT in Rwanda.
I spent about 20 minutes at kLab and already have ideas for how I could help people and how they could help me. I’ve got some new projects brewing in my brain and am really excited to get involved to tap into the nerd knowledge around me and hopefully share some knowledge of my own. Plus I really want to play some foosball. Bonus!
Phone: 0788 306 293
Email: info@klab.rw
Website: https://klab.rw
Meeting people in Kigali is fairly easy, but forming actual relationships (platonic as well as romantic) can be more challenging. If you wish to establish a lasting and meaningful friendship, there are certain challenges to be aware of when living in a diverse and fluctuating environment such as Kigali. The main obstacle is communication – or rather mis-communication – and how people of different nationalities and backgrounds express themselves.
The following is a list of phrases you’ll often come across, and what you should expect different people to actually think, mean and do. It’s mostly (read: entirely) based on my personal experience, so if you don’t agree… well, it’s not your website, is it? So get lost. Bz.
There is one post office in Kigali, and it’s straight down the road from the roundabout in front of the UTC, heading down towards Nyabugogo. It’s a big yellow building with IPOSITA written on it so it’s hard to miss. The office was recently moved here from Kacyiru.
You need to visit the post office to buy stamps and send your letter. Stamps cost a few hundred francs per letter, depending on where you are sending it. The time it takes for the letter to reach its destination varies greatly, from a few days up to a few weeks. It all depends on which flight your letter gets on, and if it gets stuck somewhere in Ethiopia.
For sending bigger packets, the safest option is to use a private postal service such as FedEx or DHL. The FedEx office is located close to Camellia Tea House, along Avenue de la Paix. The DHL office is in Muhima, on the road between the town roundabout and Gitega.
There are few street names in Kigali, and even fewer numbered houses. Letters and packages can thus not be sent to your house. To receive mail you need to first get a P.O. Box, and you do this by paying a visit to the IPOSITA office. The price for a P.O. Box is Rwf 11,800 a year. After getting a P.O. Box, your address will simply be: Name, P.O. Box number, Kigali, Rwanda.
Normally it takes a couple of weeks for letters and packages from the US and Europe to arrive, though I’ve had letters arrive a few days after they were mailed, as well as packages arriving two months later. It’s kind of hit and miss.
Packages that are too large for the tiny P.O. Boxes will be taken to an area behind the building and stored until you come to collect it. You’ll get a note in your P.O. Box that you’ll need to take to a man sitting at a desk downstairs, behind the building. Give him the note and he’ll yell for someone to come find your package. I’ve never needed to show any ID to collect a package… I guess having the note is proof enough. Assuming they find it, you’ll have to pay some taxes (usually very little) and sign your name in a book and that’s that. It’s a pretty quick and easy process and I’ve never had to spend much time waiting in line.
Mail does occasionally get lost, and if you peek into the storage rooms at the post office it’s easy to understand why. If you come to pick up a package, and they say it’s not there, have them check again. And again. It’s most likely in there somewhere, so just keep nagging them!
Many people in Kigali speak French or English so you should get by if you can speak one of those languages. Moto and taxi drivers, though, sometimes speak only Kinyarwanda which can make describing where you want to go an interesting experience. If you’re heading somewhere near a major Kigali landmark that makes life a bit easier but giving instructions to places that aren’t well known or to individual houses can be tough.
So we’ve come up with a list of phrases in Kinyarwanda that will help you get to where you want to go with minimal confusion and maximum fun! Hopefully still with a bit of miming, pointing and hand waving… we don’t want to take away all the fun stuff.
| English | Kinyarwanda |
|---|---|
| Hello | Muraho |
| How are you? | Amakuru? |
| I would like to go to… | Ndashaka kujya ku or i… |
| How much? | Nangahe? |
| That price is good. | Icyo giciro ni cyiza. |
| That’s too much. | Ayo nimenshi cyane. |
| That price is crazy! | Icyo giciro kiratangaje! |
| I know what the price should be. | Nzuko igiciro cyakabaye. |
| Don’t give me muzungu’s price. | Wimpa igiciro cy’umuzungu. |
| Do you know where … is ? | Uzi aho … iri ? |
| I don’t know where it is, do you? | Sinzi aho iri. Urahazi? |
| Please driver slower. | Nyamuneka, twara gahoro. |
| I’m in a hurry. | Ndihuta. |
| Be careful. | Itonze. |
| You’re a good driver! | Uri umushoferi mwiza! |
| I will direct you. | Ndakuyobora. |
| Turn left. | Kata ibumoso. |
| Turn right. | Kata iburyo. |
| It’s up there. | Ni hariya haruguru. |
| Keep going. | Komeza ugende. |
| Stop here. | Hagarara aha. |
| Thanks, good night. | Murakoze, ijoro ryiza. |
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