Sunday, 13 August - The Giants of Africa Youth Basketball Festival opened in Kigali, bringing together more than 2000 youth from 16 African countries in celebration of Giants of Africa’s 20th anniversary.

President Kagame and First Lady Jeannette Kagame alongside Masai Ujiri, Toronto Raptors president and vice-chair and Giants of Africa co-founder officiated the festival opening ceremony. The festival aims to inspire and encourage young people from across the African continent, while acknowledging their immense potential and the collective effort to create positive change.

With key themes including basketball, education, culture, and entertainment, the Festival strives to unite and celebrate the next generation of leaders across Africa. Youth campers represent Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal, Somalia, Uganda, Botswana, Ghana, South Sudan, Morocco, Cameroon and Mali.

As part of the festival activities, President Kagame, on Monday, 14 August, joined Masai Ujiri for the groundbreaking of Zaria Court, an urban development project with a focus on community, hospitality, sports, and culture. The Zaria Court project is being developed as part of Kigali Sports City and it is expected to create over 500 jobs in hospitality and tourism. The project is the first Zaria Court on the continent, and is centred around an urban hospitality hub.

Learn more about the Giants of Africa festival activities here