IGIHE

Author: Nicole Kamanzi Muteteri

  • Govt to ease lockdown

    The new measures will take effect on Monday 4th and will be reviewed after 15 days after a health assessment.

    According to a statement of the cabinet resolutions, public and private businesses will resume with essential staff while other employees continue working from home.
    Markets will open for essential vendors not exceeding 50% of registered traders while the manufacturing and construction sectors were also be allowed to open for only essential workers.

    Hotels and restaurants are now allowed to open until 7PM. During the last period of lockdown, they were allowed to open only for takeaway services.

    Individual sports activities in open spaces are now permitted, however, sports facilities remain closed.

    Private and public transport will resume within the same province, meaning that no transport from Kigali to upcountry or vice versa will be allowed until further notice.

    In public transport, operators were required to ensure that passengers maintain social distancing and only passengers with face masks will be allowed onboard.

    Funeral services will not exceed the number of 30 persons compared to 15 people previously.

    The cabinet directed that schools remain closed until September 2020 and places of worship remain closed for an indefinite period.

    In Sports also, Gym and recreational centers will remain closed and so will all bars.
    Motorcycles and bicycles are not allowed in the transport of people; they are however allowed in the transport of goods.

    Borders will remain closed, except for cargo and returning Rwandans and legal residents who will still have to first stay in a-14 day quarantine.

    According to the Cabinet resolutions, people will have to keep precautions and avoid being exposed to infection.

    One of the measures that were taken is that mass screening and testing for COVID-19 will continue nationwide and face masks have to be worn at all times in the public.
    All resumed works were also required to adhere to all measures of the ministry of health that are related to hygiene, face masks wearing, and keeping social distance.
    The cabinet continued to encourage electronic payments.

    There will be a curfew and no movements are allowed from 8 PM through 5 AM.
    While President Paul Kagame thanked the effort of each and every Rwandan in fighting COVID-19 and avoiding its further spread, he reminded that “the fight is not over.”

  • President Kagame calls for African cooperation in COVID-19 Response Plan

    President Kagame made the call on Wednesday during a virtual meeting of the African Union Bureau with chairs of regional economic communities with at the head, President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, who is the current AU chairman.

    The Head of State commended President Ramaphosa, for leading the AU Bureau so dynamically during the COVID-19 pandemic and as the chair of the East African Community (EAC), gave an update on what the EAC is doing to fight the virus.

    “The focus of attention has been to minimize the cross-border movement of people while ensuring that the free movement of goods is able to continue. The East African Community has also provided mobile testing laboratories for the Member States to use at designated border crossings,” President Kagame said, addressing the meeting.

    President Kagame said the East African region has made some good progress but that there is still more work to be done, particularly in the areas of coordination and harmonization, where he called for more efforts.

    “A comprehensive regional response plan is still needed, and really owning up fully to this heavy responsibility where we not only do our best in our own countries but share information and harmonize the way we go about business in the whole region,” he noted.

    President Kagame once again reminded the continent not to forget the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) which is supposed to be fully operationalized in July, although its rollout is likely to be affected by COVID-19.

    “As we have responded to COVID-19 effectively, we may also bear in mind the very important objective that lies ahead in implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area, but this will be after we have managed and come out of this situation we find ourselves in. This will be part of normalization as we start allowing business and normal life to go back as it was before,” President Kagame said

    President Kagame joined leaders from across the continent for the virtual African Union meeting chaired by President Cyril Ramaphosa

  • COVID-19: 13 New cases reported, 3 recovered

    The new cases were drawn from 1,705 samples that were tested in the last 24 hours.

    Rwanda hasn’t recorded any deaths and 98 people have so far recovered.

    The surge in numbers is attributed to a rise in cases of cross-border truck drivers and their assistants.

    The Ministry of Health stressed that the measures put in place to mitigate the spread of the virus, particularly wearing face masks must be respected.

    Globally, coronavirus cases have risen to more than 3,194,976 cases while the death toll now stands at over 226,401 and 988,079 recovered cases.

  • Qatar contributes $1 million worth of medical supplies to Rwanda in COVID-19 Response

    Rwanda’s Ambassador to Qatar, Francois Nkulikiyimfura, confirmed that the pledge made by the Qatar ruler was loaded on the Qatar Airways plane on Tuesday night and scheduled to reach Kigali the following morning. These were received by the Rwandan Health Minister, Dr. Daniel Ngamije.

    The Minister of Health, Dr. Daniel Ngamije said that the medical supplies Rwanda received from Qatar were a considerable boost to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The consignment includes personal protective equipment (PPEs) such as face masks, gloves, overalls for frontline workers, hospital boots, among others.

    “These equipments will complement a great number of medical equipment that our government has bought since the Coronavirus pandemic struck,” Ngamije said.

    Ngamije also highlighted the bilateral relationship that both governments enjoy.

    “Our relationship is strong. Seeing that Qatar is able to provide such donations at a time like this, is a sign that our relationship is at a good standing.”

    The Emir had directed his government to quickly deliver medical equipment to Rwanda and other countries to support the country’s efforts to fight the #COVIDー19 pandemic.

    Among other countries expected to receive the delivery from the Gulf nation are Algeria, Tunisia and Nepal.

    Considering the number of COVID-19 patients in the country, and the equipment in stock so far, the health minister said, “We are sure that this can take us for more three months”

    Rwanda has so far confirmed 212 coronavirus cases of which 95 have fully recovered. The country has not reported any death thus far.

    Qatar Government through Qatar Airways acquired a stake in the upcoming international airport in Bugesera district and confirmed earlier this year that it was in the advanced stages of negotiations to acquire a 49 percent stake in RwandAir.

    Medical supplies worth an estimated value of $1 million, measuring 15 Tones, were handed over to Rwanda from Qatar
    The consignment includes personal protective equipment (PPEs) such as face masks, gloves, overalls for frontline workers, hospital boots, among others

  • President Kagame on lifting the COVID-19 Lockdown

    The Head of State has said that cabinet will meet this week to analyses available information on the progress in containing COVID-19, which will inform the next course of action.

    Kagame was addressing a virtual press conference that brought together members of the local and international press corps on Monday, April 27, the president said that opening up the economy from the ongoing lockdown will be a phased exercise.

    This week’s Cabinet will consider information that has been collected from different sources which will inform the decision that will be taken about the lockdown.

    “The cabinet of Ministers is supposed to meet and put together the information that has been collected from different places including the work that has been done by the Ministry of Health in collecting data both from rural and urban areas, specifically in the capital City of Kigali, and also analyzing what is going on around us in the region, cross-border activity and how that feeds into the problem that we have to deal with,” he said.

    Kagame reminded journalists that at the beginning of the outbreak, the challenges seemed to be insurmountable but the country had taken measures progressively and used resources at its disposal to keep citizens safe from the virus.

    “It is a sort of balance act. How much do you continue progress and not allow the virus to make a comeback and how much of a calculated risk do we take to balance normal life versus the problem we have? We will be deliberately taking it step by step, looking at the data, looking at how people are being affected, how they also get involved in dealing with the problem,” he said.

    President Paul Kagame said that rushing to fully open the economy pauses a risk of undoing the gains made in the fight against the pandemic

  • President has removed Gen.Patrick Nyamvumba from duty

    Nyamvumba’s removal from office was attributed to an ongoing investigation on matters of accountability. Nyamvumba will be reporting to the Rwanda Defense Forces until further decisions are taken.

    Previously, Nyamvumba was serving as the Chief of Defence Staff of the Rwanda Defence Force before a shakeup in the top military brass in November 2019 whereby General Jean Bosco Kazura replaced him.

    Gen. Nyamvumba is the 5th Minister to be removed from Cabinet duty this year; prior to him were of Dr. Diane Gashumba (Former Minister of Health), Evode Uwizeyimana (Former Minister of State in charge of Constitutional and Legal Affairs), Isaac Munyakazi (Minister of State in charge of Primary and Secondary Education) and Olivier Nduhungirehe, (former Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in charge of East African Community).

    Nyamvumba’s removal from office was attributed to an ongoing investigation on matters of accountability.

  • COVID-19: Rwanda records highest number of new cases

    The new cases “reflect a rise in cases of cross-border truck drivers and their assistants,” the ministry said in its daily coronavirus update.

    The confirmed cases to 176, the total number of recoveries still stands at 87.
    So far, no deaths have been registered.

    According to a statement by the Ministry of Health, Friday’s numbers reflect a rise in cases of cross border truck drivers and their assistants.

    In recent weeks, the number of COVID-19 new cases has been going down.

    For the last ten days, there was no single day on which more than nine new cases were registered.

    The Ministry has continued urging citizens on observing preventive measures including regularly washing hands and staying at home.

    The Ministry is also urging the use of face masks in addition to other preventive measures.

  • COVID-19: Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally Postponed

    Organizers of this championship stated that the decision to postpone the championship was taken in line with the Public Notice issued by the Office of the Prime Minister of Rwanda, regarding the Covid19; and also after consultation with the Ministry of Sports and FIA regional Rally Department.

    “We regret to inform rally drivers, sponsors, partners, and fans that Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally 2020 which was scheduled for May 15-17th will be postponed to a later date,” the statement reads.

    “In these challenging days, the motorsports fraternity sends a message of solidarity to all drivers, navigators, officials, volunteers, sponsors, partners and fans across the world as we stay strong that we shall race again soon,” said the organizers

    The Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally is a round of the African Rally Championship and the Rwandan National Rally Championship. It is ranked third on the FIA/African Rally Championship calendar this year.

    Jean Claude Mugabo was the winner of the Mountain Gorilla Rally 2019 title, while Kenyan star Marvir Baryan was one to retain the African Championships crown for the third time in a row.

    The Rwanda Mountain Gorilla Rally is a round of the African Rally Championship and the Rwandan National Rally Championship.

  • Coping: Face masks disposal guidelines

    The guidelines follow an announcement from the Ministry of Health urging Rwandans to wear masks as it intensifies efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19.

    Eng. Coletha Ruhamya, the Director General at REMA confirmed that the institution is working with concerned institutions to issue the guidelines as soon as possible.

    “Our guidelines will be clearly elaborate to be used for both as the surgical masks and other types of masks, whereby once we use to make masks for health workers only.” She added

    Local manufacturers are expected to produce 600,000 masks every day after Rwanda Foods and Drugs Authority (Rwanda FDA) gave the green light for mask production to some local textile industries.

  • Coping: Kagame, Estonia president discussed technology as tool against COVID-19

    The two heads of state confirmed their phone conversation on Twitter and said they spoke about the importance of using digital technologies in the fight against the pandemic.

    “Joining our digital efforts and continuous collaboration across sectors will be key to ending the spread of #COVID19,” Kagame said in a tweet.

    Kagame said digital tech could also help in facing the realities that await us all when the pandemic comes to an end.

    The Estonian President said after holding discussion with Kagame that the international community needs to stand United during the pandemic.

    “Looking forward to working together with @RealSmartAfrica (Smart Africa Secretariat) to develop tech capabilities,” she said.

    With headquarters in Kigali, the Smart Africa Secretariat is a continental organization that seeks to help African countries transform using digital technologies.

    Rwanda and Estonia are known to share the belief that technology ought to be at the center of their socio-economic development.

    Estonia is particularly a very tech-savvy country with one of the highest adult literacy in the world, according to UNESCO.

    President Kaljulaid last visited Rwanda in 2017 in a two-day working visit and the two discussed cooperation in digital space.

    Estonian and Smart Africa are already collaborating to promote Africa’s digital transformation.

    As the world grapples with Coronavirus pandemic, technology is seen as an alternative to enable certain businesses to grow.

    E-commerce has, for instance, picked a pace during the period many countries have put their citizens on lockdowns.

    Citizens in Rwanda are already accessing all needed products through digital platforms.

    President Paul Kagame spoke with his Estonian counterpart, Kersti Kaljulaid about the role of technology to be used as a response to Covid-19.