The Editor, Sir:

Nice of John Rapley to write about something positive on Africa. As he noted in his column, the progress is uneven, but nonetheless, some progress is better than none. He noted a number of countries that have been experiencing economic growth and development, and noted the trauma some have experienced and continue to experience.

However, there was one rather notable omission, Rwanda, which has experienced a great deal of trauma, and has been doing a rather remarkable job of turning itself around. We know about the genocide that took place in that nation in the 1990s (they even made a movie about it) and yet the folks in that nation have decided to come together and rebuild, and now the economy there has been doing very well, so much so that even The New York Times ran a piece about Rwanda earlier this week.

Real leadership

I believe Jamaica can learn a lot from Rwanda but, as we all know, it will take real leadership from the principal players, as well as a sense of purpose and determination from the populace, at large, to make it happen. Unfortunately, the leader-ship/political will seems to be lacking or just coming in fits and starts, and the populace's spirit seems to have been somewhat sapped by the mindless violence that has been plaguing the island these last few years. I, however, believe that Jamaica can turn things around but it's going to take real leadership and not the phony type Jamaicans are getting right now.

I am, etc.,

TREVOR DAWES

trevordaws@bellsouth.net