President Paul Kagame has called for changes to Africa’s financial systems, saying young entrepreneurs with viable business ideas often struggle to access capital because they lack the collateral required by lenders.
Kagame made the remarks Thursday during a dialogue with young African entrepreneurs at the Africa Food Systems Forum 2026 in Kigali, where participants asked him about access to finance, job creation and opportunities in agriculture and the wider food sector.
The discussion highlighted a challenge facing young entrepreneurs across the continent: how to turn business ideas into viable enterprises when access to financing remains limited.
“The unfortunate thing is that much of the financial system on our continent is built in a way that largely provides capital to people who already have capital,” Kagame said.
He was responding to a question from 34-year-old Tanzanian entrepreneur Musa Mishamo, founder and chief executive of Lada Asali 60.
Mishamo said many young Africans have ideas that could transform agriculture but struggle to put them into practice because they lack capital and collateral. He asked what governments and financial institutions could do to help young entrepreneurs secure financing.
Kagame said governments should find ways to support people who have the ability and ideas to work but cannot easily access capital.
“Government should find a way to intervene so that those with little capital, or those who cannot easily access it, can have an opportunity to do something,” he said.
He cited the Rwanda Development Board as an example of how government and partners can help entrepreneurs who have the capacity to invest but lack sufficient capital.
Kagame said such support should not simply be viewed as government spending, arguing that successful businesses can grow, repay financing, create jobs and contribute to the economy.
“When those people are supported, they start making money, they grow, they do things that benefit themselves, but also benefit the country and the economy in general,” he said.
The financing discussion came as other young entrepreneurs asked Kagame how Africa can use its food sector to create more jobs and business opportunities.
Farida Baria Mustafa, 24, from Ghana, who runs a business that processes fruit waste into oil, asked what governments could do to make agriculture and food systems a stronger source of employment for young people.
Kagame said opportunities exist throughout the food value chain, from farming to processing, transport, storage and marketing.
“Food is more than a human right. It is life itself. People cannot function properly without food,” he said.
Imungana Malikana, a 28-year-old Zambian entrepreneur, asked where a young person entering the food business should focus to find opportunities in African and international markets.
Kagame pointed to agricultural inputs, technology, irrigation, storage, transport, processing and access to markets.
“If I had the opportunity at that time as an entrepreneur, I would look from the farm all the way to the final consumer or the market,” he said.
He said young entrepreneurs should identify opportunities across the value chain and use their skills and interests to determine where they can contribute.
The discussion also turned to leadership and problem-solving.
Lydia Murekatete, co-founder of All Greens, a business involved in greenhouse vegetable farming, asked Kagame what young African leaders and entrepreneurs could learn from Rwanda’s development experience.
Kagame said leadership is not reserved for a few people and urged young people to begin by examining the challenges they face themselves.
“Everyone has the ability. Everyone can be a leader if they want to be,” he said.
“Before you decide to go and solve problems that are out there, first examine yourself,” Kagame added.
He said developing such skills at a young age can help people identify priorities and build the ability to tackle more complex problems as they grow.
