Rwandan President Kagame, Urges Foreign Investment

By Eddyson Lugangwa Posted 26 April 2006 @ 01:15 pm EET     Print     Reprint     E-Mail     Comments

Nairobi (IBTimes.com) - African countries that promote education and development in an effort to combat poverty in their nations must prevent a brain-drain of qualified professionals from the continent, Rwandan President Paul Kagame said Tuesday.

Addressing the opening of a two-day conference on education and economic development in Africa, Kagame said the decline of higher education institutions was contributing to the emigration of Africans who were seeking better lives in other parts of the world.

"Africa must do more to retain these professionals," said the Rwandan leader, the guest of honor of the Canadian Council of Africa in Montreal.

Kagame said his country had seen a sharp increase in school enrollment in the last decade, but that the number of students attending university was still the lowest on the continent. "We must invest in education across the board," he said.

The conference has drawn some 300 participants, including speakers from 25 African nations, to discuss the continent's education challenges and promote partnerships with Canada.