Why Forge exists

Hospitality readiness is built through experience, accountability, and exposure to real operational environments.

Our story

A hospitality training institute. A living laboratory.

Forge Institute of Excellence opens on 31 August 2026. We train aspiring hospitality professionals through a four-month programme in Kigali. Each cohort is limited to 30 students. Quality is the standard; volume is not the goal.

Our purpose is to transform potential into resilient professionals who lead with integrity, initiative, and empathy. When people discover what they are capable of, and bring that to their work every day, businesses grow stronger, communities thrive, and Rwanda's reputation as a world-class hospitality destination is solidified.

The founders of Forge
Our values

What guides every cohort.

Excellence

Technical expertise, professional conduct, and a continuous commitment to improvement in every role.

Integrity

Every skill Forge teaches is grounded in honesty, accountability, and ethical action that builds lasting trust.

Growth mindset

Forge teaches professionals to see every experience as an opportunity to grow and every challenge as a signal to act.

Contribution

Every Forge graduate understands that their performance contributes directly to their own success, to Rwanda's service economy, and to its global reputation.

Meet the founders

20 years of hospitality. 15 years of programme design. 17 years of capacity development.

Forge is built by passionate practitioners who have run hospitality businesses, designed transformative programmes and developed thousands of professionals.

Marie-Florence Uwimana

Marie-Florence Uwimana

Co-Founder & Director

Florence brings over 20 years of hospitality experience across Rwanda and Italy, blending global standards with local authenticity. A graduate of Vatel with a BA in Hospitality Management, she is the Founder and Managing Director of Tea House Boutique Hotel & Restaurant. Bringing real-world expertise in industry operations, Florence is dedicated to raising service standards and nurturing the next generation of hospitality leaders.

Rita Rwigamba

Rita Rwigamba

Co-Founder & Director

Rita has over 15 years of experience leading programme design, grant management, stakeholder engagement, and capacity building across the corporate, nonprofit, and community development sectors. As a Child and Youth Care professional and Certified Life Coach, she brings a rare combination of structured programme strategy and deep insight into how people learn, grow, and build confidence in professional settings.

Gisèle U. Baganizi

Gisèle U. Baganizi

Co-Founder & Managing Director

Gisèle is a career strategist and adult learning and skills development specialist, with 17 years of experience and 7,000+ professionals trained. Completing an MSc in Organizational and Business Psychology at Heriot-Watt University, with a BA in International Relations from the University of Calgary, her work empowers individuals and organisations to thrive, harnessing the power of transformative learning to drive excellence.

Ready to join them?

Be part of the first cohort.

Thirty places, by design. The first Forge cohort starts 31 August 2026.