Alain Munyaburanga
Realizing Dreams
Alain Munyaburanga
MANAGING DIRECTOR OF AFRINEST ENGINEERING LTD.
Alain Munyaburanga’s parents fled Karongi, Rwanda in 1959. 35 years later, 97% of Karongi’s Tutsi population was murdered during the Genocide Against the Tutsi.
The persecution that Alain’s parents fled followed them to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. As a child, Alain was ridiculed by his neighbours, classmates, and teachers because he was considered a Rwandan refugee. Oppression hardened Alain’s resolve while softening his heart for others.
After earning his degree in Electrical Engineering in 2000, Alain worked in Nigeria, the United Arab Emirates, and South Africa before moving to his mother country, Rwanda, in 2006. Alain joined the Abundant Leadership Institute while leading a school for girls. The lessons Alain learned paid immediate dividends, but what he didn’t realize was that ALI was equipping him for a new, unexpected leadership role.
In 2018, Alain worked with partners to launch Afrinest Engineering Ltd., a company specializing in designing, building, repairing, and operating ships. Its new factory – one of the largest buildings in Rwanda’s entire Western Province – is located a few hundred metres away from where Alain’s mother grew up in Karongi. The same place his parents fled from.
Alain was drawn back to Karongi by the opportunity to find local solutions for multiple marine-related challenges in the Great Lakes region. Before Afrinest, all ships were imported and then never maintained – some boats hadn’t been repaired in over 50 years. Furthermore, all experts (e.g., captains, engineers, electricians) who worked on the lakes came from abroad. The pre-existing system perpetuated dependency, but ALI equipped Alain to see another way. At ALI, Alain learned that “you can get out of any situation by recognizing and utilizing the assets around you.”
The greatest asset Alain identified was an available workforce in Karongi. To build the factory, Afrinest Engineering Ltd. hired over 150 employees from the area, making it the largest employer in the region. By using what he learned at ALI, Alain is not just employing local staff, he’s empowering them. When Alain needs to bring in external experts, he pairs them with 2 to 3 local staff members to be trained. He is quickly preparing to open a maritime academy in Karongi that will educate experts for the entire Great Lakes region.
Even though Afrinest’s journey is just beginning, Alain is already starting to realize his dreams for Karongi, a place so closely connected to his family’s past. Before attending ALI, Alain says he had only been taught how to give orders. Now, he is a servant leader committed to blessing the region by unleashing its potential. When Afrinest reaches its near-term target of 300 employees, it won’t just represent 300 jobs and additional organizational capacity. Instead, it represents 300 individuals with dignity and increased opportunity. 300 individuals who, thanks to Alain, will be able to support their families and access healthcare, education, and proper nutrition.
With his commitment to lead by serving, Alain’s impact will only continue to multiply.
“At ALI, I learned about being a servant leader. We learned many things, but that was the most important thing I took away from ALI.
Whatever situation you are in, you are not in that situation to be the boss. You are there to serve.”
