What leaders are doing to regain the trust of the people; in the eyes of President Kagame
President Paul Kagame has shown the world what leaders need to do to regain the trust of their people, which has been lost in many countries, saying that the first thing leaders need to do is to understand the needs of their people and implement them, and that words are the key, so that tangible results can be achieved.
He reiterated this on October 28, 2025, at the 9th International Investment Forum (FII9) being held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in a discussion with other heads of state and the President of FIFA, moderated by Richard Attias, Chairman of Richard Attias and Associates, and founder of The New York Forum and the Clinton Global Initiative.
When asked what one important thing the world needs today to restore trust between leaders and people, which has clearly been damaged, President Kagame said that much can be done, but there is one important thing.
He said, “There are many important things in leadership, but one important thing, the first thing I want to say is that you produce results, here I am talking about as leaders who know what the people need, you have to use different methods so that those results are seen in line with what the people want”.
He added, “That cannot happen if you do not connect what you say as a leader with what your followers see, the two must coincide. More than that, trust must be created, so that the leaders, the people, the results I mentioned, and what happens to the people go together, so trust can be built through the visibility of what has been done.”
He continued by giving the example of Rwanda as a country that is usually small in wheat, saying that everything possible should be done so that this does not become an obstacle but rather a reason to work hard so that the country can achieve the results of countries with large wheat production.
“We try our best to make everyone understand that we are small in size, but we are not small-minded or small-hearted, [our] hearts and minds should be equal to those of those who have large countries,” he said.
“That has helped us to build on our experiences, on our history, we refuse to be bogged down by history, but rather look ahead, we believe that the first people to take care of ourselves are ourselves, although friends and partners can play a role in making it happen faster, but it should start with us, no one will come from elsewhere to solve the problems of any person, without starting with the people who should take care of themselves”.
He stressed that this is the mentality that the country has, and it is the culture that people have built, saying “and we have learned from the bad things we have gone through, it has sharpened us along with the good mentality that there is no far we cannot go, and I think these are things that can be used anywhere”.
When asked what other leaders can learn from Rwanda and how small countries can bring change to the world, President Kagame said that it is not a matter of the size of the country but a matter of the mentality and ideas of its leaders.
He said, “That goes hand in hand with what we offer as a lesson and what we learn ourselves, in solving our problems. We talked about working together, but where it has to start is how you solve your problems, what are your challenges, what are your problems?”
“We have gone through terrible problems, 30 years ago there was no country, it was completely destroyed, those of us who survived that tragedy, we had to make choices, do we continue to follow distractions and we will also lose ourselves, or do we do something to live again and work with other nations, because that is how you solve your problems and then work with others”.
The Head of State continued to point out that the lesson Rwandans have learned is that a person should first solve their problems in a real way, with the participation of their own people, and then work with the rest of the world, to add value to what you have started.
He said “And we have seen, in the past 30 years, that one thing leads to another, we have learned to take care of ourselves by asking ourselves questions, asking each other for responsibilities and doing our best to measure the results we get from this journey we have started, and we do not forget to work with others around the world.”
He said that Rwanda is paving the way for others to come and invest with it to contribute to the country’s path to development.
