Imagine entering a room, where you are connected to someone from another continent — visible, audible and in real time. This what the Kigali Portal offers.

Unlike other social platforms introduced before, the portals, to be launched officially on April 30 in Kigali, hold live audio-visual communication.

The Kigali Portal was set up inside Impact Hub located at The Office in Kiyovu, Kigali by a partnership between Shared Studios, an American multidisciplinary organisation and Kurema, Kureba, Kwiga, (create, see and learn), a Rwandan initiative giving platform to various visual artistic works.

The portals project is an international network of converted spaces forming a dynamic platform fusing technology, art innovation and community to connect globally. So far, over 10,000 people have connected through the portals in venues ranging from art festivals, refugee camps and UN headquarters to Afghanistan, Honduras, Mexico, Iran, Cuba and other places.

The journey to experiencing the portal experience all begins with making a booking online via Kigali Portal. Once at the offices, one is led into a dark room (referred to as the container or portal) fit with hi-tech camera, microphone, a projecting device and speakers. For 20 minutes the scheduled online session is to meet with others but from different places.

The portal is a saviour to the burden and cost of travelling to destinations for the same cause.

The Kigali Portal is further targeting students, business persons, artistes, who all can interact to harness cultural exchange as well as expanding their networks.

According to Judith Kaine, the lead organiser of this initiative, the portal project would not have come to fruition without the assistance of Shared Studios.

“It would actually have been very costly to achieve this kind of technology platform without a sponsor,” she said.