Author: Wycliffe Nyamasege

Rwandan government deputy spokesperson Alain Mukuralinda told The Guardian that the authorities are ready to receive the migrants ahead of the first flights scheduled to depart for Rwanda in about 12 weeks, as announced by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week.

“We are ready, and even if asylum seekers arrive here tomorrow, we shall receive them and accommodate them,” Mukuralinda said.

The two governments have made arrangements to host the refugees at city facilities, including Hope Hostel, which is located about 20 kilometres from the airport.

The hostel manager, Ismael Bakina, told the UK publication that plans are underway to accommodate the refugees and ensure their comfort throughout their stay. This includes giving them an orientation that will help them familiarize themselves with the country and its people.

At the well-maintained and elegant hostel, the migrants will be allowed to engage in extracurricular activities, including football and basketball games.

“We have designated even smoking places,” Bakina revealed, adding, “We shall offer them internet services.”

The migrants will enjoy three meals a day and have the freedom to walk to the city at will.
“This is not a prison or detention center. The migrants will go everywhere they want to go, including visiting the city center,” Bakina said.

The government will use the first three months to process the migrants’ documents before taking them to live in permanent houses alongside Rwandans.

The authorities will also cover the refugees’ expenses for at least five years, during which they are expected to start looking after themselves. During this period, those who are educated will be encouraged to apply for jobs to earn a living and contribute to nation-building.

Mukuralinda further noted that the refugees’ safety is guaranteed. He insisted that those who were claiming that Rwanda is not safe had been proved wrong after the UK government finally approved the scheme last week.

Meanwhile, the UK government is expected to start detaining migrants arriving in the UK through irregular routes in the coming weeks ahead of their removal to Rwanda.

The Guardian reports that officials plan to hold up asylum seekers who turn up for routine meetings at immigration service offices. They will also pick people up nationwide in a major two-week exercise.

The migrants would then be transferred to detention centers awaiting their removal to Kigali.

The Rwanda migration plan is part of the UK government’s strategy to deter people from arriving in the UK via small boats across the English Channel.

The UK signed the deal with the Rwandan government in 2022, but the plans were delayed due to protracted legal tussles and parliamentary ping-pong.

The UK plans to offer failed asylum seekers up to £3,000 (RWF 4,866,727) to move to Rwanda under the new voluntary scheme.

The Head of State revealed that he met Janet at the Intercontinental Hotel, and their love blossomed, leading to their marriage in August 1973.

The 79-year-old made the revelations when the couple hosted a private dinner to celebrate the 50th birthday of their son, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, over the weekend.

“Mama Janet and I hosted a private dinner celebrating General Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s 50th birthday at Entebbe. I am grateful to God for reuniting me with Maama Janet, whom I accidentally met at the Intercontinental Hotel and married in August 1973,” Museveni wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

He described his marriage with Mama Janet as fulfilling and one based on a “foundation of wealth creation, family, education, and the fear of God.”

“I am grateful to God and Maama for raising our children, who have given us grandchildren and brought joy into our lives,” he stated, further praising his son Muhoozi for his “passion and patriotism in the army.”

Museveni and Janet marked their 50th wedding anniversary on August 26, 2023.

The couple celebrated their union in style by renewing their vows in a colourful ceremony attended by close friends and family members.

General Muhoozi and his wife played the roles of best man and maid of honour at the event, with their grandchildren comprising the bridal team.

President Museveni praised his wife for sticking with him through thick and thin and for enduring the challenges of raising their children in his absence when he was fighting to liberate Uganda.

“Maama helped me to create a family, and I am very grateful for her contribution. I salute her for bringing up the children without my presence; her contribution to the upbringing has no comparison. She did it when I wasn’t there and didn’t even know I would ever return to their lives. I therefore thank God for my family, Maama Janet, the children and the grandchildren,” Museveni said.

Rwandan government deputy spokesperson Alain Mukuralinda told The Guardian that the authorities are ready to receive the asylum seekers ahead of the first flights scheduled to depart for Rwanda in about 12 weeks, as announced by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week.

“We are ready, and even if asylum seekers arrive here tomorrow, we shall receive them and accommodate them,” Mukuralinda said.

The two governments have made arrangements to host the migrants at city facilities, including Hope Hostel, which is located about 20 kilometres from the airport.

The hostel manager, Ismael Bakina, told the UK publication that plans are underway to accommodate the individuals and ensure their comfort throughout their stay. This includes giving them an orientation that will help them familiarize themselves with the country and its people.

At the well-maintained and elegant hostel, the migrants will be allowed to engage in extracurricular activities, including football and basketball games.

“We have designated even smoking places,” Bakina revealed, adding, “We shall offer them internet services.”

The migrants will enjoy three meals a day and have the freedom to walk to the city at will.

“This is not a prison or detention center. The migrants will go everywhere they want to go, including visiting the city center,” Bakina said.

The government will use the first three months to process the migrants’ documents before taking them to live in permanent houses alongside Rwandans.

The authorities will also cover their expenses for at least five years, during which they are expected to start looking after themselves. During this period, those who are educated will be encouraged to apply for jobs to earn a living and contribute to nation-building.

Mukuralinda further noted that the migrants’ safety is guaranteed. He insisted that those who were claiming that Rwanda was not safe had been proved wrong after the UK government finally approved the scheme last week.

Meanwhile, the UK government is expected to start detaining migrants arriving in the UK through irregular routes in the coming weeks ahead of their removal to Rwanda.

The Guardian reports that officials plan to hold up asylum seekers who turn up for routine meetings at immigration service offices. They will also pick people up nationwide in a major two-week exercise.

The migrants would then be transferred to detention centers awaiting their removal to Kigali.

The Rwanda migration plan is part of the UK government’s strategy to deter people from arriving in the UK via small boats across the English Channel.

The UK signed the deal with the Rwandan government in 2022, but the plans were delayed due to protracted legal tussles and parliamentary ping-pong.

The UK plans to offer failed asylum seekers up to £3,000 (RWF 4,866,727) to move to Rwanda under the new voluntary scheme.

The leaders met on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum special meeting on Global Collaboration, Growth and Energy for Development in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

President Kagame arrived in Saudi Arabia on Saturday evening and is scheduled to participate in a panel discussion themed “A New Vision for Global Development”, alongside President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Nigeria and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia.

Georgieva will also participate in the discussions alongside Lazard Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Peter Orszag.

Rwanda became the first African country to benefit from $319 million in funding from the IMF in December 2022 under the Resilience and Sustainability Trust to fund key climate change initiatives.

RSF was created in 2022 to help low-income and vulnerable middle-income IMF members address longer-term structural challenges such as climate change with longer-term, low-cost financing.

At the time, the RMF Executive Board also approved a new 36-month Policy Coordination Instrument (PCI) to support Rwanda’s economic policy and reform agenda designed to maintain macroeconomic stability and foster more inclusive growth.

“The new PCI will continue to support Rwanda’s macroeconomic policies and reforms, with a greater emphasis on policies to ensure macroeconomic stability and reforms to mitigate pandemic scars and to build socioeconomic resilience to shocks and insure against downside risks,” the Board said in a statement after the approval of Rwanda’s financing request.

Georgieva visited the East African country a month after the Board’s decision, where she had discussions with green entrepreneurs as well as young environmentalists on their efforts to address climate change-related challenges.

“I came away impressed by the dynamism and creativity of Rwandan youth advocating for climate action and environmental conservation, and entrepreneurs using their ingenuity to bring climate-friendly solutions for a greener tomorrow,” Georgieva said after her three-day visit to Rwanda.

Georgieva also participated in a round table discussion with Rwanda’s senior government officials on climate financing and ongoing climate mitigation and green projects.

“I was glad to have the opportunity to exchange views with policymakers from the region on the multi-faceted challenges they face on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic fallout from the war in Ukraine, the cost-of-living crisis and climate change. We also discussed how the IMF could help them better address these challenges,” she added.

In a statement on Friday, KQ Managing Director and CEO Allan Kilavuka disclosed that the two employees were arrested by the Military Intelligence Unit at the airline’s airport office in Kinshasa a week ago.

According to the Kenyan national carrier, the military cited missing customs documentation on valuable cargo that was to be transported on a KQ flight on April 12, 2024, as the reason for the arrest.

“Kenya Airways [KQ] confirms that on Friday, April 19th, 2024, two of our employees at our Airport office in Kinshasa were arrested and continue to be detained by the Military Intelligence Unit known as Detection Militaire des Activities Anti Patrie [DEMIAP].

During their arrest, their phones were seized, and all access to them has been denied. On April 23rd, 2024, Kenyan embassy officials and a few KQ staff were allowed to visit them but only for a few minutes,” KQ said.

Kilavuka lamented that attempts to secure the release of the staffers have proved futile as the authorities continue to ignore court orders regarding the matter.

“On April 24th, 2024, KQ filed an application in the Military Court for the two to be released unconditionally. The court heard the matter on April 25th, 2024, and granted KQ’s request that the two staff members be released to allow due process. Despite the court orders, the military intelligence unit is still holding them incommunicado, yet these are civilians being held in a military intelligence facility,” the CEO said.

The CEO has denied any wrongdoing on the part of the Kenya Airways employees whom he insists had not cleared the cargo to be airlifted.

“The cargo was not on the airside for transportation and, therefore, not in the possession of KQ as the logistic handler was still completing documentation before handing it over to KQ. This cargo was still in the baggage section undergoing clearance when the security team arrived and alleged that KQ was transporting cargo without customs clearance.

“All efforts to explain to the military officers that KQ had not accepted the cargo because of incomplete documentation proved futile,” Kilavuka lamented.

He maintained that Kenya Airways adheres to international best practices in handling and transporting cargo.

“We have stringent processes and compliance checks known as ‘Ready for carriage’ to ensure any cargo ferried on our flights meets all the statutory requirements across our destinations. All our logistics partners MUST comply with these measures before KQ accepts any cargo,” he added.

“We are perturbed by this action targeting innocent staff and consider it harassment targeting Kenya Airways’ business. KQ continues to cooperate with the investigating agencies and is working with the relevant Government entities in both DRC and Kenya to ensure this matter is resolved.”

The event, organized by the International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA), will be held between October 26th and 31st, 2025.

Evariste Murenzi, the Commissioner General of Rwanda Correctional Service (RCS), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to host the conference during an event presided over by ICPA President Peter Severin in Istanbul, Turkey, on Thursday, April 25.

The prisons boss is attending a five-day ICPA conference on technology in corrections and innovation in prison infrastructure, which kicked off on Monday, April 22.

“The signed Memorandum of Understanding between RCS Commissioner General Evariste Murenzi and ICPA President Peter Severin is an indication of the trust that the global corrections association has in Rwanda to host the mentioned conference from October 26th to 31st, 2025,” the department said in a statement.

ICPA is a non-profit association for prison professionals founded in 1998 with a mission to promote and share ethical and effective correctional practices to enhance public safety and healthier communities worldwide.

It is a non-governmental organization in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC).

Rwanda will be the second African country to host the ICPA AGM and conference after Namibia, which hosted the event in 2014.

The conference brings together more than 900 participants drawn from different parts of the world and aims to recognize outstanding progress and excellence with respect to its mission, particularly in prisons/corrections achievements which advance humanitarian, environmental, and professional corrections and prisons approaches.

Safety of Rwanda Bill, which sought to declare Rwanda a safe destination for asylum seekers after the Supreme Court declared the scheme unlawful, faced strong opposition from the Labour Party and human rights groups.

The groups argued that the safety of the migrants could not be guaranteed in Rwanda with the Lords pushing for amendments to ensure the legislation had “due regard” for international and key domestic laws, including human rights and modern slavery legislation.

The Supreme Court judges had earlier ruled that there were substantial grounds for believing “asylum seekers would face a real risk of ill-treatment by reason of refoulement [return] to their country of origin if they were removed to Rwanda”.

Steve Valdez-Symonds, Amnesty International UK’s refugee and migrant rights director, shared similar sentiments, arguing that the refugees were not safe in Rwanda.

“The Supreme Court looked at it all very carefully and concluded Rwanda did not have a system in place to protect refugees,” Valdez-Symonds said.

After a sustained parliamentary ping-pong the [bill sailed through on Monday->https://en.igihe.com/politics-48/article/reprieve-for-sunak-as-uk-finally-passes-bill-to-send-asylum-seekers-to-rwanda] after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stuck to his guns on plans to deter vulnerable migrants from making dangerous crossings to the UK using small boats.

Sunak, while defending the bill, argued that the scheme would help break the business model of criminal gangs who exploit the migrants.

The Lords allowed the legislation to pass without further amendments. It received the royal assent today paving the way for the first flight of migrants to depart to Rwanda in July.

In light of the debate about the safety of Rwanda we sought to know the experiences of the foreigners living in Rwanda as the country continues to rebuild itself after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, which claimed the lives of more than a million people.

Most of the foreigners we spoke to including students and entrepreneurs all agreed that Rwanda is a safe country governed by the rule of law.

“I have been in Rwanda for about a year now. If you’ve been to other parts of the world and other parts of Africa, you haven’t experienced this. It’s a very unique and beautiful part of Africa. It’s an extremely safe part of Africa. Coming from the South and being in other African countries, you cannot compare what we have in Rwanda,” South African business executive Firhaan Brood said.

Leila Drameh, a Gambian studying at Kigali Independent University, said, “Rwanda is a safe country. There are rules and regulations that govern the country…Hearsay doesn’t really work. People should be factual.”

Watch the video below to discover more about Rwanda: