Why is Sarah Lacy traveling all over the world, and then blogging onto a tech blog?

I’m confused—almost as much as the author herself.

Gosh, this is clumsy writing.

Now, I am really having a hard time understanding how a project of extracting and burning methane to generate energy can be considered cleantech… As far as I can remember it is a fossil fuel, and still releases CO2 in the atmosphere. May be less than oil, but that does not make it clean.

The real problem with such a concentration of methane and co2, and someone would have told you if you had asked, is far bigger than Ruanda’s needs in energy. Hundreds of thousands, potentially millions of human lives could be lost if the huge quantity of gaz dissolved in the lake, suddenly found its way up to the surface: it would instantaneously kill anyone and anything up to several miles around the trove…

Were you looking for problems that technology could fix in Ruanda? THAT, my dear, is a big, hard one that would have deserved an entire piece.

Besides this, Rwanda is a beautiful place and definitely worth a visit if you are traveling in Africa. There are many hotels at all prices, one can stay very comfortably in a sub $100 hotel in Kigali.

- “It’s one of the only times in recorded history the victims of a genocide had to go live in the same land with the perpetrators, which was no easy feat given how much of the general population was guilty of the crime” Hmm, um, Bosnia? How about then? Forget about that? Happened at the same time which is why we forgot about Rwanda.

- “This trip has cost several times what my two weeks in China cost me last month.” While Africa travel isn’t cheap, you obviously either a) don’t know how to travel or b) were too lazy to actually plan the trip. I was able to travel both ends of the Congo for three weeks for $1700 not including plane fare of course.

- “Think that’s bad? A nicer one quoted me rates of up to $700 a night. ” Yeah, mzungu prices. Get on the case of the UN, USAID, the Red Cross, and a whole bunch of others for paying that much for people to stay in the country which then drives up the price. Can’t fault the locals for taking advantage of it. You did it as well, so you’re only helping keep the prices high.

- “That’s not a commentary on the tensions between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo” If you had paid the least bit of attention to the news in the last few months, you would have seen that the two governments have been working in heavy cooperation with each other.

- “My driver was a bit confused about my excitement exploring and photographing the whole operation” He probably was actually quite pissed at all your photo taking since foreigners tend to only take shots of the poorness of Africa. I’d be pissed too if foreigners only showed the slums of our big American cities.

As an American, I thank you for taking this opportunity to misrepresent a slew of many things and show what an ill fit the American abroad is with no knowledge of history or even social grace. I’m surprised that you didn’t mention the fact that as an American you don’t have to pay for your visa to enter because the US is supplying a vast swath of Rwanda’s yearly budget. It’s extremely unfortunate that your poorly written and factually poor article is going to be read by so many people.

learn more here-
http://www.enou...s/eastern_congo

“And if the Rwandans took something for their troubles… heck, so what! Spoils of war?”

I believe at the last count there are 4 million dead in the area immediately across the border in Eastern DRC.

The “spoils of war” has a terrible price.

As incredible as it sounds – just as someone asked President Kagame recently at an MIT speech he had just given – if Rwanda was really as clean as everyone always says? He responded by asking, what did you expect? – For the rest of the world that is catching up on what has been happening there is a fundamental change taking place. I am a proud Rwandan very much aware of the no nonsense approach our leaders are taking to put in place a new way of doing things. Enough with the stereotypical attitude towards Africa and putting us all in one basket of “hopeless Africans!”. President Kagame has had to take the bull by its horns at the risk of being blamed for all kinds of things simply because the UN failed miserably (again!) to do its job in Congo.
Thank you Sarah for going to Rwanda and reporting back the changes that are taking place under the most difficult of circumstances. Corruption has been like a cancer in neighbouring countries like Kenya – despite its “better image” on the international scale – however, the evidence comes to the surface every time violence breaks out from a frustrated and maligned society. So, Rwanda has decided to take a zero tolerance approach and its working! – A luta continua!

Rwanda’s president – Paul Kagame – has seen what corruption has wrought on its neighbours (Uganda, Burundi & Congo) thus his approach is very, very low tolerance to corruption (however defined).

Corruption can never be eliminated – even in Finland – but the lower the better. Compared to Kenya or Tanzania or other African countries, it is negligible at best.

Congo: The Rwandans were primarily protecting their country from the hutu hordes (interehamwe) who were the guys behind the 1994 massacres. And if the Rwandans took something for their troubles… heck, so what! Spoils of war?

Congo sold its soul to anyone who came along. Zimbabwe, Angola, Uganda… but focus on lil’ Rwanda. There is a large Tutsi population in Eastern Congo that needs protection from the interehamwe.

Singapore: Paul Kagame looks upon Singapore for inspiration. Not a bad model. Beats gaddafi of Libya. Pity Rwanda does not have a sea port.

Internet: Faster/cheaper internet is on the way. It will take another 2 years. Kenya landed the TEAMS undersea cable in June 2009. SEACOM will land in 4Q 2009 in Mombasa, Kenya. Next step is terrestrial connections from Kenya to Uganda to Rwanda. Kenya is already connected from Mombasa to Kisumu (east to west).

Oil and gas are taken out of deposits which would otherwise continue to remain out of the atmosphere and then put into the atmosphere. With exploding lakes, the methane is going to get into the atmosphere on a non-geological timescale (you can read about this on Wikipedia), so you’re simply preserving the status quo.

Of course, I doubt that Rwanda is doing this for any kind of “clean energy” reason, and it’s certainly not sustainable, but it’s at least cleaner than driving your car.

TC is a geek-run, nerd read, blog. Nothing more.

Lacy: Submit this article to Mother Jones. Not here.

My driver? Oh God. Spare me, please.

I get the attempt at appearing to be international.

As if you have been sent there to do a story.

Obviously: you are on vacation. Fine. But please, you’re not on assignment. If you are, your editor is a money-wasting idiot.

Expensive life, clean place, good entrepreneurial outlook. As for corruption, I know first hand it does exists but it is invisible. You will never get a policeman arrest you and outright ask for your “help”.

Anybody with money and some guts can successfully build a business here.

I work for a big tech company here in Rwanda, give me a shout Sarah, I would be very interested to get your opinion on how we can develop communications and technology in Rwanda.

What’s with the monkey photo?

Surely you could have come up with a less-stereotypical image of Africa.

I daresay, a photo of real Rwandan citizens would have been a lot more appropriate.

About the “the coolest green application” you mention (methane extraction) I don’t think this may be considered a green application. How do you think it is greener than oil extraction and consumption?