Twelve delegates from the government of Rwanda completed the first New Economy Workshop hosted by the Alibaba Group in Hangzhou, China. The four-day workshop focused on FinTech, logistics, e-commerce and big data technologies.

The Workshop program was established to empower participants to continue supporting the development of Rwanda's digital economy.

It follows the launch of the first African eWTP (electronic world trade platform) hub in Rwanda in October 2018.

According to the eWTP agreement, the government of Rwanda and Alibaba committed to work together to strengthen the country's economic development by promoting policy innovation and providing capacity building to grow Rwanda's digital economy.

In 2017 Alibaba executive chairman Jack Ma visited Rwanda and pledged to support education and e-commerce on the continent.

In August 2018, the Alibaba Business School launched its Global E-Commerce Talent (GET) programme in Rwanda in partnership with Rwanda's Higher Education Council and the Rwanda Development Board.

The School has confirmed it will host the first Alibaba Netpreneur Training program from 2 - 13 March, 2019 for approximately 40 entrepreneurs contributing to digital transformation.

Angel Zhao, President of Alibaba's Globalisation Leadership Group, said, "At Alibaba we have seen first-hand the transformative impact digital technology can have in building an inclusive society. This New Economy Workshop is meant to not only provide capacity building to Rwanda's policy makers, but also to inspire them to become advocates for Rwanda's digital transformation and for the country's technology entrepreneurs."

George William Kayonga, Chief Executive Officer, National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB), added, "The Alibaba ecosystem has enabled millions of people to participate in the global economy and improve their standard of living through the use of technology. I see great opportunity for Rwanda to similarly build a digital economy allowing us to move rapidly up the learning curve using the Alibaba experience as our guide."