By David Himbara
President Paul Kagame’s phantom projects are no longer funny — they are outright insane. While Kagame used to be preoccupied with taking the internet to every village, he is now talking crazier stuff. He is dreaming about air defense systems — laughably, he does not have an airforce. Kagame is talking about nuclear energy — he has not tapped the enormous renewable energy potential in Rwanda. Here are Kagame’s top five dream projects:
1. Air defense systems
![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*fkLJTBmjs3-8G_ILblzFmg@2x.jpeg)
2. Nuclear power plant
![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*VXoR8AzCN2Vt47yHTwmgPg@2x.jpeg)
3. Railway to the seaport of Mombasa, Kenya
![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*8NLjeogDEZymlEltf9FJbA@2x.jpeg)
4. Railway to the seaport of Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*hiJicfCHcJVOYVzGOhd9qA@2x.jpeg)
5. International airport at Bugesera
![](https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/800/1*9VfoPUFUVwhYddfrVcxnUA@2x.jpeg)
Kagame who rules with an iron fist, is increasingly announcing a series of bizarre projects that alarm even his friends. The cheapest of Kagame’s projects is the international airport which is nearly US$1 Billion. The rest runs into billions of dollars. An air defense system runs into US$12 billion, as would a nuclear power plant. The cost of a nuclear power plant is more than Rwanda’s gross domestic product of US$8 Billion. Each railroad would cost at least US$2 Billion. Is this gentleman OK or unhinged?