Author: IGIHE

Ageing Demands: Older persons claim special care, activists on policy gap, Government finds no gap

Ensconced in his chair at home on Friday at 4.00pm local time, retired Pastor Naasson Hitimana plays gospel music on the radio on his left side, has a Bible on the cockpit by his right and awaits a visitor he was told about, none else but a journalist from IGIHE. Elder Hitimana has got another chance to break loneliness and engage in a lengthy talk, definitely as long as 25 minutes compared to 10 minutes of the previous talk when he got tired and the talk was postponed until another schedule.

His caregiver is away for a gospel mission, a housemaid is busy outside, Pr Hitimana sits alone in a big modern house located in Kicukiro District, Kicukiro Sector, Gasharu Cell. He shakes hands again with the visitor who had been there a week before but the elderly cannot recall the face until he is reminded. He picks Bible and explains how he usually loses mind on everything starting from Bible verses he had memorised and used for around 40 years. He talks of frailty that comes with elderhood.

He says he was born at the time birth days were not recorded but it was later guessed and recorded for him as born in 1932, meaning he is now 85 years old but he says he is older than that. He started teaching at primary school in 1947 and was later sent to Cameroon where he spent four years receiving pastoral training and came back to Rwanda in 1962 with a qualification as a Pastor for a Christian church. He served the church until 1998, the time he retired due to frailty of ageing.

Hitimana, whose wife and some children passed away while other children live overseas including a son working in England, has no close family member around him but a nephew, young Pastor Désiré Niyomugabo, who committed the last seven months to staying with his paternal uncle, Hitimana. Retired Pastor Hitimana lives on his pension and rent of his two houses but sympathises with older persons who do not have means to afford their needs.

“I had always heard of a local adage ‘Gusaza ni Ugusahurwa’ (loosely translated as ageing is losing all) but I could not understand its real meaning until this age. An older person loses all capabilities to do what they used to do for and find themselves in need of someone else to provide everything just as a little baby needs. I have means to pay my housemaid but I imagine how challenging is the life of older person without such means, it is worrisome!” He says.

Pastor Hitimana urges churches to work closely with governments to provide eldercare by establishing centres for older persons who do not have caregivers, provide them with space for expressing their views and contribute to decisions that affect their well-being.

“Imagine that we need someone to take water and do us a bath yet young people also have got responsibilities and need to work for their prosperity. Centres for older persons would help better because they can hire workers and pay them for the job. It is a huge but crucial project; its elaboration should start now,” he adds before concluding, “I am tired now, you have made me talk and it is good for me but I am tired. I like having someone attending to me for a talk as I usually spend entire day alone. Thank you for coming to talk with me.” He stops talking, stands up, leans on walls and walks to bed for rest.

The concerns were shared by a number of other older persons that IGIHE visited including Tesla Bayijuka, 93, Louise Bamurange, 84, both living at Muhima Sector in Nyarugenge District and members of elderly support group ‘Nsindagiza’ based in Remera Sector of Gasabo District.

United Nations’ definition of older person considers aged 60 years and above.

{{Activists advocate for particular policies }}

Well over 10 years through Age Demand Action (ADA), rights activists have advocated for international convention on the rights of older persons, participation of older persons in governments’ decisions that affect them and having choice about their lives in their respective families.

Elie Mugabowishema, the president of Nsindagiza, a local non-governmental organisation that advocates for rights and social welfare of older persons, told IGIHE last week that there is still a lack of international convention and local policies about the rights and welfare of older persons.

He urged the Government of Rwanda to set up particular platforms through which older persons can channel their concerns as children, youth, women and people with disabilities have theirs.

Béatrice Mushimiyimana, the coordinator of Nsindagiza activities, said most of older persons suffer serious depression and stigma resulting from isolation and creating space for them to participate in the country and family’s life would be the best solution as well as developing effective social protection schemes for older persons.

{{Government finds no gap
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Minister of State in charge of Social Affairs and Social Protection at the Minitry of Local Government, Dr Alvera Mukabaramba, told IGIHE last Friday that government does its best to support all vulnerable people and older persons constitute the majority of beneficiaries of social protection schemes such as cash transfer under Vision 2020 Umurenge Programme (VUP) and Community-Based Health Insurance (Mutuelle de Santé).

“Not all elderly persons need support. Some are receiving their pension while others have children or other family members supporting them. We are working on a comprehensive social protection policy considering together all categories of the disadvantaged as the current policy will expire in 2018,” she said.

She said that only people with disabilities have their particular policy being developed because their case is not only about social aspect but fall in different ministries such as Ministry of Infrastructure for their mobility, Ministry of Education for their special needs in education and Ministry of Health for their special healthcare.

Dr Mukabaramba urged young people to save for their old age, saying that every working Rwandan, not only monthly salary earners but also informal sector actors including those on government support schemes, has to save for pension as a sustainable solution for ageing demands.

“Government seeks to strengthen pension scheme and poor people who will join the scheme will receive government’s incentives according to law which is now in Parliament. Meanwhile, children should not forsake their old parents and government will intervene where necessary,” she said.

Marie Rose Mureshyankwano, who chaired the Parliamentary Standing Committed on Social Affairs in Lower House for long before being appointed Governor of Southern Province last year, told IGIHE that older people do not necessarily need particular laws, policies or a council to have their issues handled because existing mechanisms are considering vulnerable older persons for social protection.

“Every Rwandan cannot have a particular policy or council to deal with their concerns. These councils for women, youth and others are not only for social support but mainly for empowering those categories of people in order to participate in the country’s affairs,” she said.

{{International Day of Older Persons}}

Dr Mukabaramba said Rwanda will mark International Day of Older Persons, which is usually marked on 1st October, on 8th October in Nyamasheke District at a national level and in all districts under the theme “Stepping into the Future: Tapping the Talents, Contributions and Participation of Older Persons in Society.” Nyamasheke is the second district, after Gicumbi, with the highest number of older persons.

Fourth Rwanda Population and Housing Census, 2012 released in 2014 indicates that there were 511,738 elderly persons (aged 60 and above) living in Rwanda, representing 4.9% of 10,515,973 population. According to National Social Protection Strategy 2011, only 24,300 aged 65 years and above (7.4%) had access to a pension from the Rwanda Social Security Board (RSSB).

Global AgeWatch Index report 2015 ranked Rwanda as 89th out 96 countries studied including 11 on African continent, the position that Minister Mukabaramba refuted saying that there are obviously Rwanda’s commitments towards older persons which were not reported and ensured of reporting all to win a better ranking in the next report.

The study measured four key domains for older people: income security, health status, capability, and enabling environment –factors that older people say are necessary for them to be able to function independently.

Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Older Persons in Africa adopted by the 26th ordinary session of the Assembly convened in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on January 31, 2016, stipulates that “States Parties shall ensure that the 1991 United Nations Principles of Independence, Dignity, Self-fulfillment, Participation and Care of Older Persons are included in their national laws and are legally binding as the basis for ensuring their rights.”

September 26, 2017
Gatete confident on economic rebound

The figure was almost half the 7.5 percent reported by National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR) for the same period in 2016.

Wholesale and retail trade contracted by 6 percent, while agriculture expanded by 6 percent, the NISR said in a statement.

Claver Gatete said he expected the third and fourth quarters to perform better than the first two, supported by stronger activity in construction, services and agriculture.

“There is a clear improvement and for the next two quarters we are going back to normal high growth,” Gatete said.

A new GDP projection for 2017 will be issued around October after a meeting with a team from the International Monetary Fund, Gatete said. The current growth forecast for the year is 6.2 percent.

The central bank’s repo rate-setting body is due to meet on Wednesday.

September 26, 2017
Kagame attends Angola’s Lourenço swearing-in

Lourenço who had been the defence minister, won the 23rd August 2017 elections.
Lourenço 63, replaces Jose Eduardo Dos Santos who has been the Angola president since 1979.

Since last year, Lourenço has been the vice-president of the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), theleading party in the country.

Both countries, Rwanda and Angola have bilateral relations on peace-keeping.

September 26, 2017
Rujugiro’s UTC goes for Rwf 6.8 billion

Court bailiff Ms Nsabimana Vedatse conducted the auction.

Eleven individuals and companies had tendered in their interest to prequalify in bidding for the mall, but two companies and one individual namely; Kigali Investment Company, Four Unit Company and Pascal Kanyandekwe reached the competitive bidding.

Tribert Rujugiro Ayabatwa had 97% shares in the mall with others taking the remaining 3%.

The auctioning of UTC comes at time when the property owed tax arrears amounting to Rwf 1.2 billion, to Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) accumulated between tax 2007 and 2013 when Nyarugenge district took over as its caretaker and managers.

September 26, 2017
RGB urges NGOs on citizen-based development, innovativeness

Shyaka was speaking Monday during a dialogue that brought together RGB and representatives of INGOs in Rwanda aimed at discussing and identifying collective partnerships that would lead to inclusive citizen-based development.

Shyaka said that INGOs have ample programmes which help the country attain its development goals and called for better management of projects funds to reach as many beneficiaries as possible.

“Despite the short time we’ve worked together, there’s ample hope that focus shall be directed towards building foundations that will enable bringing as many people in the loop that will be benefitting from the mutual projects ” he said.

“For the government to get INGOs operate under RGB, the intention was to deepen cooperation with all organizations, strengthen transparency and innovativeness so that we get win results,” he said.

The head of International NGOs forum in Rwanda, Papa Diouf said that since they started to operate under RGB guidance, a number of positive developments have been realized.

Currently, there are 173 non-governmental organizations operating in the country.

In February 2016, RGB was given the mandate of registering and regulating local International NGOs’ responsibilities that were previously held by Migration Office.

September 26, 2017
France assigns magistrates to BNP Rwanda lawsuit

In June, three non-governmental organisations filed a lawsuit accusing the bank of financing the purchase of “80 tonnes of arms used to carry out genocide” by the Hutu regime, even though “the bank had to have known the genocidal intentions of the country’s authorities”.

As AFP reported; the Paris judiciary confirmed Monday that it opened an investigation for “complicity in genocide and complicity in crimes against humanity” on August 22, and asked the Paris genocide and war crimes division, which is already handling 25 other cases linked to the Rwandan genocide, to run the probe.

The lawsuit was filed in France by Sherpa, which defends victims of economic crimes; Ibuka France, a Rwanda victims’ association; and the France-based Collective of Civil Parties for Rwanda, which pursues claims against genocide suspects.

The NGOs say BNP authorised the transfer of $1.3 million (1.1 million euros at current rates) to the regime in June 1994, one month after the United Nations had placed an embargo on weapons deliveries to Rwanda.

{{BNP is France’s biggest bank and among the world’s top 10.
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The plaintiffs allege that BNP authorised the transfer of the money that was held by Rwanda’s national bank (BNR) to an account held at Swiss bank UBP by Willem Tertius Ehlers, a South African intermediary who owned an arms-dealing brokerage called Delta Aero.

The 100 days’ genocide led to the massacre of more than 1,000,000 people.

Kigali has repeatedly accused Paris of having a hand in the genocide and of being slow to prosecute some of its kingpins living in France.

The case is the first time a French bank is under suspicion of being involved in the genocide.

September 25, 2017
1994 Genocide against the Tutsi survivor: Raped and impregnated by in-law, traumatized, homeless, rejected

Well over 23 years after the Genocide, Kankindi has no distinct place to call home. She has always suffered extreme trauma that never allows her to go back to stay in her home place. Consequently, she has not benefited from any government of Rwanda’s special support which has provided almost all vulnerable Genocide survivors with houses and other basic needs.

Recounting her Genocide ordeal to IGIHE, Kankindi says her father took the entire family to seek refuge at his son-in-law’s home in the neighbourhood when killings started in their area but the man handed them to the hit-men (interahamwe) who killed others but Kankindi, then 20-year old, was rescued by her cousin’s husband who told her to go away so that she does not die in his sight.

She went back to her sister whose husband locked her in the room and started raping her daily for about a week before she managed to escape and left Gisagara for Kamonyi where she had another married sister. She did not know she was impregnated by her sister’s husband until end of month when she did not experience her menstrual cycle.

“When I got here in Kamonyi, I realised that I was pregnant and later produced a daughter. I hated life especially when I saw girls of my age getting married and others completing studies. When my daughter was 6-months old I felt I didn’t want the child, I hated her and I wished I had been killed too in Genocide,” narrates Kankindi and talk ends here as her trauma resurfaces, loses conscious, daughter locks all doors, counsellor comforts her, later takes her to bed and talk shifts to the daughter.

Daughter, Mutoni (not her real name) says her mother usually gets traumatised and runs out on the streets and sometimes disappears from home for some days. “When we notice signs of her trauma, we lock all doors so that she does not go out on the streets,” says Mutoni.

When Gacaca jurisdictions started, Kankindi went back home in Gisagara to testify on what she saw during the Genocide. Her sister’s husband who raped her got jailed and the sister bitterly hated Kankindi, threatening her to have no peace as long as her husband is in prison. Kankindi failed to stay in her home area because of scornful words from neighbours, sister and her children but the environment also triggers her trauma. She decided to stay in Kamonyi where she does not have any property but lives on subsistent agriculture on the farm left by her sister to four children.
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Daughter’s school dropout }}

Kankindi’s daughter, Mutoni, dropped out of school when she was in senior three in 2015 when her school fees support from Solace Ministries, a local charity, was reduced from Rwf70,000 to Rwf40,000 per term. Her mother was unable to top up. She is currently working on the farm and sometimes at construction sites to earn a living.

Mutoni, 22, who has never seen her father (currently serving his sentence), had all along believed her father died in Genocide until she learned of her birth circumstances in 2012 when her mother opened up. She wishes to have their own house and get more professional training in construction so that she can earn a better living when she gets a job upon completion.

“Our hosting family (her cousins) was mistreating us and sent us outside their house. They chased us out of their house but since we had nowhere to go, we settled in their old kitchen with a falling wall and leaking roof. I and my mother started a very hard life without food, no shelter, no clothing, not even a blanket; we persisted until one of the cousins got us back into the main house but we are still facing harassment here,” she says.

“My prayer is for our own house. I am a grown-up girl and work to earn our living. We can live happily away from here. My mother often gets traumatised, she cannot stay nearby her offenders in Gisagara District, and we wish to have a house somewhere else.”
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FARG, Sector pledge support}}

While most Genocide survivors have benefited from Government special schemes which provided them with adequate housing and other basic needs, Kankindi’s case has all along been unknown to officials of local government and the Fund for Neediest Survivors of Genocide (FARG) which promotes social welfare of the survivors.

Christine Nyirandayisabye, Executive Sectretary of Runda Sector in Kamonyi District, says she has been unaware of the case for over eight years in the office but assured she is going to look for Kankindi and help her get on the list of FARG beneficiaries and establish how she can be further helped in accessing support through other government programmes.

Eng. Théophille Ruberangeyo, Director General of FARG, says he is going to follow up the issue and make sure she gets on the list of beneficiaries regardless of where she stays if she has proof of being a Genocide survivor. Kankindi obviously has the proof.

Ruberangeyo says they prefer to build houses for neediest survivors in their home areas where they have other resources like land which helps in farming activities especially because the government usually gives them cows but adds FARG also helps survivors settle where they feel comfortable after investigating the threats in their home areas.

“She is entitled to FARG support. She, first of all, needs counselling to help recover from that trauma. We have a counsellor in every district who is going to help her. Then, we shall provide her with adequate shelter,” he says.

Though the daughter, Mutoni, is not eligible for FARG support because she is not a Genocide survivor, Ruberangeyo promised to do advocacy personally to the Ministry of Local Government so that she gets support to take her back to school.

Every year, FARG builds new houses and renovates existing ones for vulnerable Genocide survivors. This year alone, 369 new houses and renovation of 331 existing ones are expected to be delivered at the budget of Rwf9.5 billion.

The 2014 report indicated that 1,687 households of Genocide survivors had no shelters but 1,483 households have so far got houses while 204 will get theirs in the near future.

September 25, 2017
GDP grew by 4% in the second quarter 2017

Industry and manufacturing grew by 6% boosted by agro-processing and production of chemicals, rubber and plastics.

Wholesale and retail trade decreased by 6% due to overall reduction of imported products on the market.

Finance Minister, Claver Gatete said that they expect Q3 and Q4 to perform well due to the booming construction activities and an encouraging agricultural season B.

“Drivers of growth will be services, agriculture and changing landscape of industry sector driven by Made-in-Rwanda” he said.

Industry sector demonstrated slow growth of 1% due to 4% decrease in construction works compared to Q2 last year.

According to NISR, 6% growth in Agriculture is attributed to good harvest in season A that grew by 4% and 22% increase in export crop performance.

“In Q2 GDP at current market prices was estimated at Rwf1,869 billion up from Rwf1,636 billion in Q2 of 2016,” said NISR Director General Yussuf Murangwa.
In service sector, hotels and restaurants grew by 9% while administrative and support services increased by 21%.

Good harvests of tea (28% growth) and coffee (8%) significantly contributed to the growth of exports.

September 25, 2017
Anti-smuggling unit recover taxes worth over Rwf1.2 billion

The money accrued from recovered taxes and penalties levied on intercepted smuggled goods between January and September this year.

At least 70 percent of the seized smuggled goods were secondhand clothes locally known as caguwa, according to the CO of the Rwanda National Police unit – RPU – attached to Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) to fight fraud and smuggling, among others.

Following the increase of taxes on second hand clothes from $0.5 to $2.5 per kilogramme, as part of the national programme to promote locally produced goods under the brand ‘Made in Rwanda’, fraud and smuggling of caguwa has shoot up.
Between February and May alone, RPU intercepted over 80 tons of secondhand clothes, according to statistics.

“Besides caguwa, Ibitenge – traditional attire – soft and alcoholic drinks especially expensive liquors, cooking oil, powdered milk and vehicle spare parts are other commodities that are commonly seized,” SSP Businge said, attributing the success to information from the people.

“We have intensified operations, checkpoints along mapped routes but also increased awareness which has strengthened our working relations with the people through information sharing, either from the loading points even in neighboring countries where the illegal practices are orchestrated or at the final destination where they are noticed as they are being off-loaded,” Businge said.

It is said that bundles of second hand clothes are concealed in rice, maize and cassava flour sacks.

“We are able to know all these tricks because of the good partnership with the people.”
The CO also warned traders, who attempt to evade taxes by under-valuing goods or manipulating electronic billing machine, where less of the sold goods are billed.

Emmy Mbera, the coordinator of Electronic Billing Machine (EBM) in RRA, appealed to the public to always demand receipts owing to the fact that taxes or Value Added Tax is paid by the end user – the buyer.

“The end user is the one who pays VAT not the seller; the seller is just like a broker between the buyer and the government. If the buyer doesn’t demand the receipt, then he or she is not sure if their financial contribution in national development has been delivered. These are public funds that should just be delivered, because contrary to that, it’s more like embezzlement, which you will be forced to pay with other penalties as the law states,” Mbera warned.

Article 24 of the law on VAT, obliges all VAT registered taxpayers in Rwanda to acquire and use EBM to issue tax invoices to their customers on every transaction they make. Failure to comply is a tax crime that attracts penalties.

The same law states that any person required to use EBM but sells goods or services without issuing an electronic invoice faces a fine of ten times the value of the evaded VAT. However, the fine is doubled if one commits the offence for the second time.
In article 200, any person with uncustomed goods shall be liable to an imprisonment not exceeding five years or a fine of 50 percent of the dutiable value of the goods involved, or both.

Additional penalties include the closure of business activities for a period of thirty days and being barred from bidding for public tenders, among others.

Under the East African Community Management Act, in article 199, the driver caught for fraud or smuggling goods, is slapped a fine of US$5000 while the vehicle and the goods are auctioned.

Currently, RRA is auctioning vehicles and goods that were intercepted in such fraudulent acts, over the past years.

Owing to the fact that the City of Kigali constructed seven modern health centres at a tune of about Rwf1.9 billion, it means that the recovered taxes can construct about five other health centres.

“When you buy a product, know that you have paid VAT but not the seller. Demand a receipt and ensure that all that you bought is accounted for on the receipt, that way you will be sure that your contribution will be delivered.”

Robert Mugabe, the Deputy Commissioner for Revenue Investigation & Enforcement Department, also said that the increased operations by RPU have significantly minimized on revenue losses by deterring, detecting and preventing smuggling, and tax evasion.

Source: RNP News

September 25, 2017
Heineken beer to be brewed in Rwanda

Through his twitter account, Karabaranga said that the deal is a result of government of Rwanda efforts in attracting investment in the country.

“Heineken beer is to be produced in Rwanda soon and exported in the region, thanks to the attractive doing business climate,” reads his twit.

It is anticipated that the production of Heineken products in Rwanda will be done by Bralirwa, a Rwanda’s brewer company of which Heineken N.V owns 75% shares.

September 25, 2017