IGIHE

Category: Education

  • Rwf 7 billion worth of TVET schools inaugurated in Western Province

    Rwanda’s Workforce Development Authority has officially inaugurated five – Technical and Vocational Education and Training schools worth over Rwf 7 billion located in the districts of Karongi, Nyamasheke, Rusizi, Ngororero and Rutsiro in Western Province.

    The schools were built with the support of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) to enable youth to acquire skills with which they create own jobs.
    The official ceremony of launching the schools was held yesterday at Vocational Training Center of Rubengera in Karongi district.

    The Minister of Education, Dr. Papias Musafiri who presided over the inauguration said that technical and vocational knowledge some of the major ways that can help adults and young generation to create off-farm jobs.

    “The government of Rwanda is doing everything possible to ensure the realization of its targets of creating 200,000 off-farm jobs every year as per the EDPRSII,” he said.
    Today, the newly constructed schools have 963 students and 66 instructors and facilitators taking courses in; construction, cooking, hospitality and electricity maintenance among others.

    Giancarlo de Picciotto, the SDC Representative in Rwanda said that the first batch of the school graduates have demonstrated a good commitment and translating what they learnt into practice.

    He explained that his country will continue supporting TVET education in the country.
    The governor of Western Province, Caritas Mukandasira has requested parents to send their children to vocational training centers for skills that will drive them into job creation.

    Francine Uwamahoro, one of students at VTC Rubengera said that she has started reaping benefits from acquired knowledge.

    “I have a canteen; I can make bread, buns and pastries. I hope to progress well because I acquired enough knowledge from the VTC,” she said.

    The director of WDA, Gasana Jérȏme said that increasing quality education in VTC will be attained through the ‘Trainings of Trainers program’.

    The Minister of Education, Dr. Papias Musafiri officially inaugurating Rubengera Vocational Training Center yesterday

  • Rwanda and Microsoft’s partnership to transform education

    Rwanda and Microsoft’s partnership to transform education

    Rwanda has entered into a partnership with a global information technology giant, Microsoft, which will see the country’s learning systems transforming.

    Warren Lafleur, Head of Education West, East & Central Africa at Microsoft , told CNBC Africa, that the choice of country was dependent on a couple of things such as leadership and strategic direction a country was taking.

    “Rwanda’s ambitions are aligned very strongly with things we are looking at developing in Africa like developing human capital that has strong ties to economic growth,” he said.

    “We believe in the notion in the mobile-first, cloud-first world.”

    He added that when it comes to digital devices, the type people used was necessarily the issue, for Microsoft, saying it was the experience the group was trying to promote in improving learning experience.

    “Learning in Africa needs to be transformed, if you think about the kinds of jobs that coming out in the 21st century, many of them don’t exist as yet,” he said.

    “If you focus on creating access to the school system and rich immersive learning through technology and building capacity between teacher-community experiences that allows self-discovery, you can create a fantastic ecosystem that empowers and transforms.”

    Nkubito Bakuramutsa, adviser to the Minister of Education weighed in saying Rwanda was building a knowledge based economy.

    “Most of Rwandans being in rural areas, we are pushing in terms of ICT and education, and by 2017 we would have covered the entire country,” he said.

    “We want schools to be the central part of the community where students are able to learn based on skills, interests and competencies. We are happy to work with a global ICT giant such as Microsoft.”

    Bakuramutsa said the IT education sector was a billion dollar business and encouraged small business enterprise to start deploying content and providing support.

    “The ministry of education is looking at outsourcing some of the support at district level through partnerships between big corporations and small companies.” 

    Rwanda and Microsoft’s partnership to transform education. PHOTO: Wikipedia

  • African Leadership University comes to Rwanda

    African Leadership University (ALU), a private learning institution will launch in Rwanda September 2016, bringing the number of universities in the country to 33. Students in ALU will have similar courses with those in Cambridge of Massachusetts in United States.It will start with the school of business.

    The administrators of the university, during the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa last week, said that they will bring experts from universities across the world, reducing the need to travel outside the country for academic purposes.

    Fred Swaniker, a Ghanaian who founded ALU in 2013, said that they want to create a university that offers knowledge needed by Africans in addressing challenges of the 21st century.

    “We have collaboration with School of Business, Harvard, Mackenzie and Wotton. Students will undertake courses from such schools via internet once per four months. Thereafter teachers from these schools will come to Rwanda and teach students face to face,” he said.

    Swaniker said that a cheap university of America requires the payment of USD 240,000 in four years and have enough time for break.He explained that students in ALU have eight months of study within a year while remaining four months are spent at work to the extent that a student completes four years period of study with one year of working experience.

    Its first branch was launched in Mauritius with 180 students while the second branch will be opened in Kigali in September.

    Dr Donald Kaberuka heading the international advising council appreciated such efforts to collaborate with others for Africa’s transformation.

    “Education in African universities has lagged behind. When I was the president of African Bank of Development, I faced complicated work and wondered on what to do. Rich people send their children for education abroad while the remaining majority study in weak universities with inadequate capacity,” he said.

    Dr Kaberuka said that the January WEF held in Davos on Transformation on technology related activities demonstrated that needed reforms are rooted on knowledge and talents other than money.

    “ALU is trying to offer such knowledge within short possible time so that Africa will be self sufficient in economy while the majority of citizens have jobs,” he said.

    Graça Machel, the wife of late Nelson Mandela and leader of ALU said that they target to acquaint the youth with needed knowledge in building ‘Africa we all need’.

    “ALU connects youth from all corners of Africa in every higher learning institute. Working with ALU presents chances of gaining more international knowledge no matter whether one is rich or poor”, she said.

    Swaniker says that his university will emerge among first universities of the world in the next 15 years. Fred Swaniker was in 2006 recognized as the first world growing entrepreneur with activities transforming people’s livelihoods. In 2011, Forbes ranked him among ten young opinion leaders in Africa.

    Fred Swaniker, a Ghanaian who founded African Leadership University

  • Cyumba students raise alarm over undefined charges

    Cyumba students raise alarm over undefined charges

    Students of Groupe Scolaire Cyumba in Gicumbi district have expressed their dissatisfaction over a Rwf 1500 charged as report cards fees paid every school term .
    Students explain that making them pay such fees is inconsiderate but have done so for a long time yet their counterparts in other schools pay only Rwf 500 once a year.

    “I am now studying in senior five but we have been paying Rwf 1500 per term which they claim to be used for processing our reports/performance cards. Other schools pay Rwf 500 for the same per year. I wonder whether this school has particular policies different from nationally accepted principles,” wondered one student who preferred anonymity but observed that students are not chased for delaying school fees payments, but can be sent home on failure to pay report cards fees.

    The headmaster of Groupe Scolaire Cyumba, Nyabyenda Narcisse told IGIHE that they charge students the Rwf 1500 per term and use it for various school activities.

    “We call the fund ‘bulletin fee’ but part of it is used for other needs such as supplementing discipline masters’ payments and teachers’ motivation,” he said.

    Nyabyenda said that the prefect in charge of discipline is paid Rwf 40,000.
    The executive secretary of Cyumba sector, Abahe Fred says he’s not aware of such collections but will follow up to establish the truth and address it accordingly.

    cyumba-2.jpg

  • REB warns university students on selling loaned laptops

    Rwanda Education Board (REB) has announced a plan of following up cases of first year students at the University of Rwanda who have started selling Laptops they were given as loan for which they have to pay in installments.

    Students at College of Business and Economics (CBE) using the laptops provided on loan guarantee told IGIHE that their mates started selling the laptops since they already had other laptops or want to buy different quality of laptops.

    “I know one colleague who immediately sold the laptop provided on a REB loan as he had another one. I also plan to sell the donated laptop since I couldn’t deny it while I am obliged to pay for it,” said one student.

    “Most of these laptops provided by REB are for sale even though it is not easy to find clients, “disclosed another student. Students said that they will lack clients when REB distributes many laptops among students.

    They told IGIHE journalist that the price of these laptops on black markets ranges between Rwf 70,000 and 100,000 yet they are valued at Rwf240,000.

    The Ministry of Education explains that donating these laptops is meant to facilitate university students during their studies.

    The director of Rwanda Education Board, Janvier Gasana told IGIHE that they didn’t know the matter of students involved in selling the laptops adding that they are going to make a follow up.

    “It would be sad if anyone sold a laptop provide on loan. We are going to follow up the matter and punish the culprits,” he said.

    Materials of these laptops are matched in Rwanda by Positivo BGH plant and are being distributed among students by Africa Smart Investment Distributor in collaboration with the Ministry of Education.

    Students in need of such laptop have to first make agreements with the bank facilitating him/her to get it and pay Rwf 17,000 per month for 18 months.

    The director of Rwanda Education Board, Janvier Gasana

  • Students protest at Sudan’s oldest university

    Days of rallies held after reports the government plans to sell some buildings for use as a tourist attraction.

    Students at the oldest university in Sudan have been protesting for three days over reports the government plans to sell some buildings on the historic campus for use as a tourist attraction.

    Dozens of students have been injured in scuffles with police at Khartoum University and several protesters have been detained.

    News has spread that some faculties will be moved from Khartoum to Suba, a southern suburb.

    “As a student at the Khartoum University, I completely refuse to accept the decision of the Khartoum government to sell the university or move it to Suba,” a protester told Al Jazeera. “For me this university is a heritage site, it holds great memories. It’s our history.”

    The university was built at the beginning of the 20th century on the banks of the Blue Nile river.

    A few days ago, the Ministry of Tourism announced plans to transform some of the historic buildings into a tourist attraction.

    But the government denies there are plans to move the university’s activities to another site. It says a rumour started spreading after the institution asked for fresh financing.

    “The university has asked for financing for some of its projects in Suba. This has been misunderstood and wrongly interpreted to mean to move the university from its location,” cabinet spokesman Ahmed Mohamed Saleh said.

    “The cabinet confirms that no decisions have been made at all to move the university or dispossess its facilities.”

  • Liberian teachers to strike over private schools

    Monrovia – Liberia’s teachers have threatened to strike over plans to privatise the country’s crumbling primary schools, as criticism grows louder over a multi-million-dollar project to outsource education in one of the world’s poorest nations.

    The president of the National Teacher’s association of Liberia (NTAL) said on Thursday teachers were ready to strike to express their discontent over the subcontracting of education to a private firm, Bridge International Academies.

    The so-called public-private partnership (PPP) is being rolled out across 120 schools as part of a pilot project, with what is believed to be the aim of incorporating all primary schools.

    “We have decided to go on strike nationwide very soon if the government of Liberia does not listen,” NTAL head Mary Mulbah told AFP.

    “This new system called PPP is not the solution to an improved education system in Liberia,” she said.

    “All the education system needs, is proper funding from government, and a strong monitoring mechanism.”

    Recommendations to the government had fallen on deaf ears, she said, accusing the administration of President Ellen Sirleaf of squandering $148 million on the project.

    The government has previously told AFP only that it would spend $65 million in the first year of the rollout.

    In a sign of the union’s hardening attitude, the NTAL replaced previous head Reverend Ellen Fatou Barclay, who was seen as too sympathetic to the government plan, with the more militant Mulbah.

    Not a dime

    The privatisation scheme has also been condemned by the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on the right to education, Kishore Singh, who called it “completely unacceptable” and in violation of “Liberia’s legal and moral obligations”.

    Liberia’s deputy education minister however told AFP earlier this month that the PPP system would be free, would improve standards and had its base in US-style Charter Schools, independent establishments that seek to raise educational standards in poor areas.

    “The parents will not pay a dime… The new system is going to use teachers that are on government payroll, and they are going to be monitored,” Aagon Tingba said.

    The dire state of education in the country, where children receive on average four years of schooling, according to the UN, and where 40% of the population is illiterate, had led the government to consider more radical solutions, Tingba said.

    “The education’s system we have now is on a serious challenge. Research has revealed that most of our high school graduates today are equivalent to fourth graders. Can we continue the same old thing and expect a different result? I say no.”

  • Genocide history to be taught in primary and secondary schools

    The school curricula of primary and secondary school are set to be widened to include teaching children history of genocide perpetrated against Tutsi as a way of helping them understand how bad leadership led to tragic events that befell the country culminating in 1994 genocide against Tutsi. This will build deeper understanding and prevent reoccurrence of similar mayhem.

    Such moral values of fighting against genocide already apparent in other courses are believed to equip children with knowledge and preparing them into proper appreciation of the country’s history and future.

    In an interview with IGIHE, the Minister of Education , Dr.Musafili Papias, said that such courses were introduced at the beginning of this year and will go in line with other programs like Ndi Umunyarwanda, Itorero and other associations meant to fight against genocide.

    Musafiri explained that such courses include units of genocide causes, how it was prepared and consequences; building a Rwandan community that is well informed about the contemporary history.

    “It is about teaching Rwandans starting with children who have to understand history of bad leadership and where such can lead the country. This will give a foundation in building a better future of our country,” he said.

    The deputy director of Rwanda Education Board in charge of curriculum, Dr. Joyce Musabe, said that genocide courses will be included in several academic disciplines as it affected a wide range of people and events.

    She says that these courses were prepared to strengthen patriotism, honesty, humanity and Ndi Umunyarwanda among Rwandans, the ultimate aim being to ensure that genocide never happens again.

    “A person who stands to hunt his fellow and kill him/her is an enemy of the country and his fellows. He loses humanness,” she said.

    Rwanda Education Board signed a memorandum of understanding with Aegis Trust where the latter shall publish books of testimonies and genocide history to be used as reference tools.

    The executive secretary in the National Commission for the Fight Against Genocide (CNLG), Dr. Jean Damascene Bizimana says teaching the causes, process and consequences of genocide in schools is an important step towards realizing peace, unity and reconciliation in the country.

    “We want a country free of genocide ideology .Together we will build a better future of our country,” he said.

    Information from CNLG indicates that genocide ideology harbouring has reduced by 84% since 1994 with 180 cases in 2013, 138 cases in 2014 while the number of genocide ideology cases was 168 by July 2015.

    The Minister of Education , Dr.Musafili Papias

  • Kenya:University of Nairobi suspends 62 students over strike

    Vice-Chancellor Prof Peter Mbithi said the institution has initiated disciplinary process against the students.

    The University of Nairobi (UoN) has suspended 62 students for being involved in rioting and destruction of property during a recent students’ unrest.

    Among those who have been sent home is Mr Mike Jacobs, who led a group of students in protesting against the re-election of Mr Paul Ongili, also known as Babu Owino, as the Student Organisation of Nairobi University (Sonu) chairman.

    Mike Jacobs lost to Mr Owino, attaining 3,000 votes against the winner’s 18,000 claimed the elections were rigged in favor of the winner with the help of the administration.

    Vice-Chancellor Prof Peter Mbithi said the institution initiated disciplinary process against the students “for participating in student unrest and destruction of public property”.

    “They are therefore required to collect their suspension letters from the Registrar, Students’ Affairs, latest by Friday, April 15, 2016,” said Prof Mbithi, in a notice to students posted on the university’s website on Tuesday.

    He, however, did not indicate how long the suspension would last.

    The suspension of the students comes just a day after the VC held lengthy talks with Education Cabinet Secretary Dr Fred Matiangi and his Interior counterpart Maj-Gen (Rtd) Joseph Nkaissery.

    Mr Matiangi said he would not interfere with any action or decision that the university would make concerning the strike that led to the closure of the university last week.

    On Monday last week, the protests against Mr Owino turned chaotic when the students burnt Sonu offices.

    The students blocked a section of University Way and Uhuru Highway before police used tear gas to disperse them.

    The university’s senate held a meeting the following day and resolved to close the university. Students were ordered to vacate the campus by 5pm.

    The date for reopening of the university remains unknown.

    The University of Nairobi's main entrance.

  • USAID publishes 2.5 million teaching materials to support Rwanda’s new curriculum

    The United States Ambassador to Rwanda, Erica J. Barks-Ruggles, and the Directorate General for Science, Technology, and Research at the Ministry of Education, Dr. Marie-Christine Gasingirwa, jointly kicked off the nationwide distribution of 2.5 million P1 and P2 teaching and learning materials yesterday at Ecole Primaire d’Application de Kimihurura.

    The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) invested Rwf 3.1 billion to develop and print the texts to support the implementation of the Government of Rwanda’s new competence-based curriculum. Throughout April, the texts will be delivered to every P1 and P2 classroom in all 2,460 schools, reaching an estimated 1.1 million students.

    This year, primary and secondary teachers nationwide are implementing a new competence-based curriculum which focuses on the development of practical and analytical skills that are needed in the modern workplace. In addition to training teachers on the new curriculum, the availability of high-quality teaching and learning materials is considered a key component to its success.

    USAID developed the materials for P1 and P2 classrooms in alignment with the new curriculum through its Literacy, Language, and Learning Initiative, which is implemented by the Education Development Center.

    The teaching and learning materials, which include illustrated story books and teacher guides, have been produced in both English and Kinyarwanda. The content was approved by the Rwanda Education Board (REB), which officially adopted the materials as the core texts for Rwanda’s competence-based curriculum and maintains the copyright for them.

    The strong collaboration between USAID and the Government of Rwanda made the publication of the books possible.

    In her remarks, Ambassador Barks-Ruggles explained, “Through partnership with the Ministry of Education and the Rwanda Education Board, our combined efforts to improve education outcomes can make a difference in early grade reading and in the future of this country.”

    REB leaders acknowledged how foundational reading is for students’ success in school. “The materials developed through the collaboration of USAID and REB emphasize reading–the primary competence for learning,” said Dr. Joyce Musabe, Deputy Director of the Curriculum and Production of Materials Department at REB.

    Over the last three years, USAID has committed over Rwf 48 billion in basic education in Rwanda, primarily focusing on literacy initiatives because reading is widely considered the first and most important skill for students to succeed in school.

    To date, USAID has delivered 7 million teacher guides, story collections, and reading books, as well as 14,000 mobile phones loaded with audio lessons for Primary 1 to 3 to schools nationwide.

    The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is the foreign assistance agency of the United States Government. USAID supports $150 million of development assistance annually to Rwanda, with programs in health, economic development, education, and democracy and governance.

    Gasinzigwa receives the teaching and learning materials from Amb. Barks-Ruggles at Ecole Primaire d'Application de Kimihurura