Prime Minister Ngirente Edouard encouraged the youth to leverage their potential since they are the foundation of the country’s development.

He made the statement on Wednesday while speaking to more than 3,000 youth convened at the 8^th YouthConnekt Convention, at Intare Conference Arena in Rusororo-Kigali.

Prime minister Ngirente pointed out that there is no development without the youth, and that the Government of Rwanda looks at the youth as the foundation of Rwanda’s development.

“70% of our population is below 35 years, this confirms that youth are the heart of our country. There are several achievements that our country has attained because of the energy of its young people,” Prime Minister Ngirente said.

 “Under the government’s National Strategic Transformation (NST1) 2017-2024, the youth shall continue to have an important role to play in the social and economic development,” the Premier added.

Dr Ngirente counseled the youth to take advantage of the existing infrastructure and acquire skills that should help them in developing themselves and the country at large.

The 3000 thousand youth gathered at Intare Conference Arena included those who represent students from Secondary schools and university, those who attended Itorero Urungano, while others are from 17 countries in the Diaspora.

Since its inauguration in 2012, YouthConnekt Convention aims at giving time to youth to provide their ideas and thoughts towards the country’s development.