Author: IGIHE

The school was closed this week following the Minister of State in charge of Technical Vocational Education and Training in the Ministry of Education, Olivier Rwamukwaya visit in the school on February 4th.

The decision also followed two notices to which the school did not heed, unable to provide vocational education and was requesting them to fill all requirements.

Muhanga District vice-mayor in charge of social affairs, Fortune Mukagatana requested teachers and parents to facilitate children enroll in other schools.

Speaking to IGIHE, Mukagatana said that they implemented minister’s decision of November 8th last year which required the school not to admit other students before meeting the minimum requirements.

“The closure was not abrupt but followed Workforce Development Authority’s (WDA) recommendation after establishing that the school did not meet requirements to offer vocational studies, so we closed them ,” she explained.

Unique Academy Head Teacher, Jean Ntezirizaza told IGIHE that after implementing all recommendations, they wrote to WDA requesting for permission to continue operation.

“Following the January 25th evaluation by WDA officials, we implemented their recommendations like constructing male students’ dormitory and buying new ICT equipment. All such needs have been met and still waiting from confirmation letter,” he explained.

The delegation headed by the vice mayor of Gatsibo in charge of Social Affairs, Theogene Manzi, included the village leader and his committee, elders and the youngsters.

Kagarama has not registered a crime in the last three years, thanks to the initiatives by the residents in partnership with their village leaders.

They visited the Rwanda National Police Headquarters in Kacyiru, where they were received and briefed by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Emmanuel K. Gasana.

The tour was on the invitation of RNP to appreciate their community policing efforts and also to give them more skills in crime prevention.

IGP commended their overall commitment in crime prevention and making their village an example of community policing.

“You set a clear picture of what community policing means and how it impacts on the wellbeing of the communities,” IGP Gasana said.

He explained that security organs cannot effectively fight criminal activities without partnership with members of the general public, and urged them to keep the spirit, endeavor to always share the skills with the other villages to ensure the communities safe communities.

The Police Chief pledged that the force will build a village office in Kagarama to supplement their community policing efforts.

Late last year, RNP connected all the 153 households that constitute the village, with solar energy valued at a tune of over Rwf13 million, as a reward for their outstanding implementation of the community policing concept.

Meanwhile, the delegation later visited the Campaign against Genocide Museum at the Parliamentary Building and Kigali Convention Centre.

At the parliament, they were given a grand tour of the museum where they were given an overview on the liberation struggle and the capture of Kigali as well as how RPF- Inkotanyi stopped mass killings in Kigali during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

Patrick Bimenyimana, the representative of Kagarama, thanked RNP for the support adding that the tour enlightened them further and a huge motivation for them to draw more commitment to further make other communities safe and secure.

The operation follows various serious accident reports largely caused by use of phone while driving, speeding, reckless maneuvers, mechanical faults and failure to respect right to way especially for pedestrians.

In an operation conducted along Nyabugogo-Muhima-City centre, for example, traffic officers caught about 45 vehicles within a space of one hour, whose drivers were using mobile handsets while driving.

“Driving while using the phone is one the serious problem that we see, and a major cause of accidents. A phone diverts the driver’s thinking and attention… it engages the brain. That’s why it’s one of the issues we are focusing on in this operation but also teaching passengers not to allow anything drivers do that can put their lives in danger,” Commissioner of Police (CP) Rafiki Mujiji, the commissioner for traffic and road safety, said.

“As we penalize drivers, we also want passengers to own their lives, call us and report bad driving, and where possible get out of that car. These operations and awareness will continue along roads across the country,” he added.

Accidents resulting from use of phone, over-speeding, bad maneuvers and violation of right to way account for about 90 percent of the total 78 serious accidents that occurred last month alone. These accidents involved majority private vehicles with motorcyclists, cyclists, and pedestrians the majority victims.

“Accidents caused by public and cargo vehicles reduced by 65 percent largely because of the installation of speed governor, which are now fitted in about 90 of automobiles in these two categories, but now the issue of speeding private vehicles coupled with use of phone is a common issue we are trying to address through both sensitization and also enforcing the law against errant drivers,” he said.

“When you are driving or riding keep in mind that there are other people using the same road, and who want to live and have families to look after like you,” CP Mujiji explained.

He also hinted on the ongoing revision of the law related to road traffic that will provide punitive penalties for offenders.

The proposed penalty for speaking on phone, for example, will increase tenfold from the current Rwf10, 000, enacted.

Similarly, there is likely to be an increase in jail term from the current maximum six months as well easing the process of revoking a driver’s license where necessary.

The current law is said to be weak and easily challenged in courts of law where only one person had his driver’s license revoked in the last four years out of hundreds of cases, while very few drivers whose recklessness result into loss of lives are convicted.

The affected lodges received letters instructing their closure on 18th January from Rubavu Sector local leaders requesting them to close but did not do so. The district instructed them further to close on Tuesday this week.

Speaking in a meeting with lodge services providers on Thursday, Rubavu District Mayor, Gilbert Habyarimana said that the decision was necessary for them to re-evaluate their services.

“The problem is that people have turned residential houses into lodges and others dub them hotels. The hygiene of houses which receive many people is quite different from that of a five-people family,” he said.

In the meeting some lodges were allowed to continue operation but given one month to address hygiene issues.

“Monitoring exercise will continue as people should embrace to operate while meeting all required standards. You should provide commendable services to both local and foreign visitors coming to seek hospitality services from you,” he said.

Affected lodge owners did not want to talk to the media.

The visiting delegation is led by Brigadier Genenarl Addisu Gebreyesus Gebreyohanes, Head of Military Courts Directorate.

On Monday the delegation visited the Military High Court Headquarters at Kanombe where they received briefings and discussions with officials from Rwanda Military High Courts and Military Prosecution.

Exchanges were mainly on the legal establishment and organizational structure of Military Courts, appointment and accountability of military judges, relationship between Military Courts and Military Prosecution as well as service delivery among other discussed issues.

The delegation yesterday paid courtesy call to the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Patrick Nyamvumba to share the outcome of their visit.

The head of the delegation revealed that he got useful additional briefing from the CDS on how Rwanda Legal System and Military Justice in particular have evolved.

“On ground we have got new issues. Rwanda has a modern legal system from the organization of Military courts, the jurisdictions and the Prosecution. Rwanda has a good and disciplined Military Justice,” he said.

During their visit, the delegation also visited Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre at Gisozi and the Campaign against Genocide Museum at the Parliament to learn more about the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi and how it was stopped by Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) and its armed wing, Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA).

Rwanda and Ethiopia maintain good relationship and have Memorandum of Understanding on Military and Defence Cooperation. They also have strong cooperation in military training among other areas.

The numbers were revealed yesterday in Kigali in a press conference that was organized by a local organization the Voice of Children Today (VCT), an association of working children.

The penalized are individuals, company managers and household heads. The law says that a person found employing minors are fined with between Rwf500,000 and one million.

The officer in charge of Social Security and Child Labour Control at MIFOTRA, Damien Nzamwita said that the report of the year 2016/2017 revealed 352 people who were penalized but added that the monitoring exercise will continue until they eliminate child labour.

“We have set these sanctions as a way of eliminating child labour. We believe there are people capable of doing those jobs, so we shall work with the media to create this awareness,” he said.

The law says that only people from sixteen and above are allowed to do payable jobs, however, VCT says that children below sixteen are also employed in different jobs.

The officer in charge of fighting rural migration in VCT, Diane Benimana said that in their observation, some children employed as domestic house-helps are even below fifteen.

“Household jobs affect physical and mental development of children; these children wake early in the morning and sleep late night. People should know and respect the rights of children by helping them to prepare for their future,” she said.

According to the Integrated Household Living Conditions Survey (EICV) of 2013/2014, a total of 222,918 children were engaged in child labour, where among them 59,931 or 41% were domestic workers, 51,200 ( 35.1% ) in agricultural, animal resources and fishery activities while 4,888 (3.3%) were engaged in mining.

Law Noº13/2009 Regulating Labour in Rwanda Article 4 prohibits the employment of children under 16 years of age even as an apprentice. A child aged 16-18 years may be employed provided: the rest period between two working days is at least 12 consecutive hours when the work is proportionate to their capacity, is not at night or involve labouring in insanitary or dangerous conditions dangerous to their health, education or morals.

As a young entrepreneur, not only do you need proper mentorship to grow, you also have to read a lot of educational posts and articles. This is to be able to understand how to better yourself, and how business works.

As a young entrepreneur, there are things you have to avoid if you truly aim for the top; they are.

{{Quitting when the going gets tough}}

There’s a popular saying that “quitters never win”. It’s also said that “when the going gets tough, the tough get going”. What these mean is that to truly succeed at anything, quitting isn’t an option.

There will be hard times and heavy challenges, but rather than see them as obstacles, and be discouraged, see them as a process that have to be passed through before success comes. If every successful businessman quit when they had it tough, there wouldn’t be that many successful ones around.

{{Distractions}}

Focus is as important as hard work. Total commitment and quality result can only be achieved in a short period of time when distractions are avoided. Even Thomas Edison admitted that his success happened as a result of total commitment, in his words; he said “I owe my success to the fact that I never had a clock in my workroom. Seventy-five of us worked 20 hours every day and only slept four hours and we thrived on it.”

{{Procrastination}}

According to Walt Disney, “The best way to get started is to stop talking, and begin doing.”

If there’s anything that can’t ever be regained once it’s gone, it’s time. It is so precious, and a minute used very wisely can be the difference between success and failure.

Know opportunities when they knock, and utilise them. Invest your time in growing yourself to be better. Even when it seems to be going well, do not relax, keep going. Hard work and success are married, and nothing can separate them.
{{Source:elcrema.com}}