At AAA, we’ve learned a simple truth the hard way: to build something lasting in Africa, you must listen to the culture — but also be bold enough to shift it when needed.

This is not easy. It takes time. And it takes trust.

Years ago, when we first began working in rural Rwandan communities, we were committed to doing things differently. We didn’t arrive with big promises or sweeping assumptions. We stayed. We sat in village homes. We listened. We watched how the women we aimed to work with spent their days — what burdens they carried, what decisions they had to make, and what rhythms governed their lives.

We didn’t want to disrupt culture just for the sake of efficiency. We wanted to build something with the people, not over them.

But there came a point where growth demanded structure.

As demand for our baskets grew, it became clear we couldn’t keep visiting every home individually. We needed to centralize operations — a buy center, one place and time to serve many women and grow production. So we announced: Buy Day is Tuesday at 9 a.m.

But they didn’t show up until noon. Or not at all.

Why? Tuesday was market day in their village. We hadn’t listened deeply enough. So we shifted: Order day moved to Tuesday. Buy day, Thursday. Pay day, Friday. We aligned our systems with the pulse of their week — not ours. That part was about listening to culture.

But not everything could bend.

Some of the women still arrived hours late — 3, 4, even 5 hours after the posted time. It threw off the team. We were buying late into the night, with flashlights, exhausted. It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t sustainable. So we drew a line.

“If you’re not here by 10 a.m., we don’t buy.”

The next week, more than half the women showed up late. They knocked. They pleaded. They’d traveled long distances, and we badly needed their baskets. But we didn’t open the door.

We walked out and explained our view. This wasn’t punishment. It was a lesson in mutual respect.

We said: “We are business people. You are business people. If we’re going to play on the global field — selling to major retailers and meeting deadlines — we need to show up on time. We need to plan ahead. That’s what it takes to be taken seriously. And we want you to be taken seriously.”

They boycotted us for two weeks. But then, they watched their neighbors show up on time and walk away with income — real income. They saw we were serious. And when they returned, they came early.

Culture + Structure = Respect

This is what it looks like to listen to culture while also building something new within it. We weren’t trying to “Westernize” our partners. We were preparing them — and ourselves — to do business in the global economy on equal terms.

Too often, Africa is viewed through a lens of dependency. The continent has been defined by aid, not trade. By excuses, not expectations. At AAA, we reject that framing. We believe in dignity through business — and that means holding ourselves and our partners to a higher standard.

It also means understanding where people are coming from — before asking them to walk a new road.

Why It Matters Now

As the world rethinks where and how it sources products, Africa is at a turning point. The U.S. and Rwanda have an opportunity to build a new kind of trade relationship — one based on mutual accountability, shared growth, and respect.

But it won’t happen with handouts or soft expectations. It will happen when we:

• Listen first, then build systems that work
• Invest in people, not just products
• Demand excellence, not excuses

AAA is not just creating jobs — we’re building businesspeople. And when we do that well, the U.S.–Africa relationship becomes more than just economic. It becomes transformational.

Let’s Build It Together

If you’re a brand, a buyer, a policymaker, or an investor, the time to engage is now. The relationships, mindset, and infrastructure are being shaped today — not someday.

We’re not here to “help.”
We’re here to partner.
To trade.
To build.

Because Rwanda is ready.
And so are we.