I notice that the pricing plans don't reward the middle tier as compared to the first tier.....would have expected that middle one to offer savings per SMS sent versus the first tier. My 2 cents feedback. Service looks very useful, congrats!
Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
31–40 of 81 posts
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#32Who needs cheese when you have an unlimited supply of matoke?[1] Have you seen any positive changes in ICT ed from the Carnegie Mellon program[2] that started there? [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matoke [2] http://www.cmu.edu/rwanda/
Hah, matoke is most definitely NOT a viable substitute to cheddar!
It is early days still for CMU, they are only just starting their second year, but I think their influence here and in the region will be huge, mostly because there just aren't many (any?) other top tier universities here. Their program isn't straight CS, but it does offer CS courses and the profs are top grade, so the graduates will be head and shoulders above others in the region.
The long term impact of that could be pretty huge.
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#33I notice that the pricing plans don't reward the middle tier as compared to the first tier.....would have expected that middle one to offer savings per SMS sent versus the first tier. My 2 cents feedback. Service looks very useful, congrats!
Ya, that's mostly because we decided to discount the lowest plan for launch, it will 'normally' be $49 in the future, so then things will ramp the way you'd expect.
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#34Earlier quoted context omitted.
Do you have to worry about Hutu/Tutsi issues still?
No, not at all. Rwanda is probably safer than any place in the states.. you can walk around anywhere in the city in the middle of the night (and I do) and there are no concerns. There is still unrest in DRC but that is very much localized.
I'm very surprised to hear you say that. My experience of Rwanda is that the issue is always just below the surface. I spent three months there 3 years ago working as a Physics teacher. The election was on when I was there and it was rather surreal, the radio was constantly going on about genocide and there was a lot of tension in the air.
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#35Why did you choose Rawanda over South Africa/Nigeria/Morocco which I would think would be easier African countries to work in
I can't say that we evaluated every country before choosing Rwanda, to be perfectly honest we didn't look at that many, we just decided that Rwanda was 'good enough' and would probably work so we went for it. The three countries you list are very very different from Rwanda and from each other, so it is hard to comment on that. In many ways South Africa has more in common with California than it does with Rwanda.
I'd be curious to hear more about this decision. I note that it lies somewhere approximately in between the extremes of Kenya/Nigeria/SA on one end and Central African Republic on the other.
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#36OP here, happy to answer any questions peeps have on Nyaruka and our little journey.
You mention you have two young kids. What's the education system like in general for kids in Rwanda?
I don't have a lot of experience for what school is like generally, but I can speak about it from an ex-pat's perspective. Our kids go to a Rwandan school (though a prestigious private school). It's far, far cheaper than private school in the states. Like most schools, the experience you have is highly dependent on the teacher you get, but we've been pretty lucky in that regard.
In some ways the academics are a step down and in others they are step up. For example, some of the subjects can be a bit rote, but my youngest has half of his classes taught in french (even though we are not french speakers). On the whole we are quite satisfied with their school. We also remind ourselves that as humans, we learn in so many ways and having our kids experience life in Rwanda (or anywhere outside of America for that matter) is one of the finest gifts we can offer.
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#37Could you be a bit more specific when you say Kigali is "safe"?
Is it safe for me to move to as a woman? Is it safe for me to bring my wife and kids? These things are often relative.
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#38I never thought I'd hear an American complain about lack of good cheese. You guys have never tasted cheese!
Great project anyway, very inspiring!
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#39This is awesome! Grew up abroad and this seems like a great opportunity.
Was it easy to get a work permit / visa for Rwanda?
Re: Building a Software Company in Rwanda, 3 Years Later
#40I never thought I'd hear an American complain about lack of good cheese. You guys have never tasted cheese! Great project anyway, very inspiring!
To be fair I spent the first half of my childhood in France, so I beg to differ. :)
But like I said, after years of gouda, even cheddar starts seeming like an incredible delicacy. I even like gouda, you just need some variety!