Category: Education

One remarkable example of this progress can be witnessed in Munini, a district in Nyaruguru.

Recently, G.S. St Jean Munini, a modern school, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Dr. Edouard Ngirente during the celebration of Rwanda’s 28th Liberation Anniversary on July 4th, 2023. This state-of-the-art educational facility boasts 47 classrooms, advanced laboratories, a well-stocked library, and a Smart Classroom equipped with computers and internet access to facilitate online learning for students.

Moreover, the school includes a kitchen, a spacious refectory accommodating up to 1000 people, a playground, and a comprehensive range of school supplies. Among others, the Munini Early Childhood Development Center and three kindergarten classrooms cater to the educational needs of the youngest learners in the community.

The head teacher of G.S. St Jean Munini has highlighted the importance of having well-equipped schools and facilities, stating that they greatly enhance students’ learning experiences. Through hands-on experiments and visual aids, students gain a deeper understanding of theoretical concepts and witness their practical applications in real life.

Students themselves expressed their appreciation for the modern facilities. Léonie Niyodusenga, a fifth-year secondary school student specializing in Mathematics, Chemistry, and Biology (MCB) emphasized the significance of laboratories in enhancing their understanding of complex subjects.

With the aid of projectors and visual demonstrations, intricate concepts, such as the human body’s functions, become more accessible and easier to comprehend.

Emmanuel Mbabazi, a student studying Mathematics, Economics, and Geography (MEG), lauded the Smart Classroom available at the school for its invaluable assistance. With access to various technological resources and comprehensive research opportunities, students can explore subjects more deeply and develop practical skills that benefit them both in school and in real-life situations.

TVET schools

Rwanda’s commitment to establishing a knowledge-based economy is reflected in the government’s vision for 2035 and 2050. By these milestones, Rwandans are projected to earn a minimum of $4,000 and $12,000 per year, respectively. Ensuring high-quality education and improved medical services are pivotal to achieving these ambitious development goals.

To this end, the government has undertaken the construction of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) schools across the country monitored by the Rwanda Housing Authority (RHA). These schools provide vocational skills training and other courses previously requiring individuals to cross the border into Uganda for education.

Located near the Rwanda-Uganda borders, Shonga Technical School in Tabagwe Sector and Cyanika Technical Secondary School in Burera District stand as prime examples of this initiative’s success.

These schools inaugurated two years ago offer courses in carpentry, electricity, construction, and more. The Dean of Studies at Cyanika TSS, Jean Baptiste Hitimana, acknowledged the significant positive impact of these schools, as students no longer need to travel across borders to pursue their education.

Verien Hakorimana , head of Shonga TVET, highlighted that the establishment of the school was a response to the local community’s request, ensuring accessibility for youth who previously lacked access to vocational education. He proudly shared the success stories of graduates who secured decent jobs, indicating the schools’ positive influence on both personal and professional development.

Students studying at these TVET schools exemplify the transformative power of modern education.

Thierry Ndatimana, a Construction student at Shonga TSS, expressed gratitude for the school’s presence in their rural area, highlighting the caring leadership that strives to provide opportunities for all Rwandan children.

Julienne Uwineza, a senior five student in Carpentry at Cyanika TSS, emphasized that studying carpentry as a girl was not only fulfilling but also a pathway to personal growth and empowerment. She encouraged her fellow girls to embrace carpentry and prepare for a future filled with possibilities.

These examples of progress are not limited to specific districts. Throughout the country, numerous schools have been constructed, bringing educational infrastructure closer to Rwandans. The government’s unwavering commitment to education and its role in building a prosperous future is evident in these initiatives.

With each milestone achieved, Rwanda continues to prove that transformation and progress are possible even in the face of immense challenges.

By investing in education, infrastructure, and vocational training, the country paves the way for a brighter future, where every Rwandan can pursue their dreams, contribute to their community, and realize their full potential.

Cyanika Technical Secondary School

Groupe Scolaire Kampanga

G.S. St Jean Munini

Shonga Technical School

Kiyumba Technical School

During a visit to the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Secondary School for Sciences on Monday 19th June 2023 in Kigarama Sector, Kicukiro District, Amb. Alqahtani interacted with students and teachers, taking the opportunity to highlight the UAE’s efforts in the education sector.

Education has always been a top priority for the UAE, as emphasized by its founding father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. The late Sheikh Zayed believed that investing in education was the best use of wealth, creating generations of educated and trained individuals.

The UAE’s focus on education extends to both men and women, with significant progress made over the years. In 1975, adult literacy rates stood at 54% for men and 31% for women. Today, literacy rates for both genders are close to 95%.

Emirati women, in particular, have excelled in higher education, with 77% of them enrolling after completing secondary school. Furthermore, women constitute 70% of all UAE national university graduates, and 46% of graduates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields are women.

According to Amb. Alqahtani, the UAE National Strategy for Higher Education aims to equip future generations with the necessary technical and practical skills to drive the country’s economy in both the public and private sectors.

This initiative has been extended to other countries through scholarship programs offered to foreign students at UAE universities. These students, upon completion of their degrees, return to their home countries to contribute to their respective economies.

The UAE’s vision is for its students to be the best in the world in reading, mathematics, and science, and the Ambassador expressed his desire for the Rwandan students he addressed to strive for excellence in their science classes.

The UAE has developed student exchange programs, allowing Emirati students to gain enriching academic, professional, and personal experiences by spending time in other countries. Additionally, students from around the world have the opportunity to apply for exchange programs in UAE schools, providing them with diverse educational and cultural experiences.

In a short period, the UAE has established an excellent and diverse higher education system. With over 100 public and private institutions, including local and international campuses, such as the Sorbonne Abu Dhabi University, New York University, and the American University of Sharjah, the UAE offers a wide range of educational opportunities.

Scholarships have been provided to Rwandan students at these universities, including the UAE University and Sorbonne Abu Dhabi University, for those who have excelled in their secondary education.

The UAE has been actively supporting education in Rwanda for several years. The Al Maktoum Foundation has funded two secondary schools, including the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Girls Secondary School for Sciences in Muhanga. Moreover, the Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation has provided full support to the Islamic Secondary School for Sciences and the Islamic Cultural Center for the past 14 years.

As part of joint efforts to support the education sector in Rwanda, the UAE Government has awarded scholarships to outstanding Rwandan students in various UAE universities through the UAE Technical Assistance Program.

Since 2018, twenty students from Rwanda have received UAE Government scholarships at the UAE University, pursuing disciplines such as Architecture, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Biology, Biochemistry, and Computer Science. In 2019, an additional ten Rwandan students were granted full scholarships to pursue bachelor’s degree programs at Sorbonne Abu Dhabi University.

Speaking to students and teachers, Amb. Alqahtani affirmed his country’s commitment to continue providing opportunities to the best performing Rwandan students.

“I want to reiterate that the UAE is fully committed to ensure that not only its citizens should have access to the best educational opportunities, and my country in cooperation with Rwanda, is willing to give the most talented students access to higher education in internationally recognized universities in the UAE,” he noted.

After the interactive discussions, Amb. Hazza Alqahtani awarded seven academically best performing students with Samsung smart phones.

UAE is a country in Western Asia, founded in 1971. It consists of seven Emirates, with Abu Dhabi as the capital and Dubai as the economic capital. The UAE has a population of around 10 million, with 90% being expatriates. Its main exports are oil, natural gas, pearls, and precious metals/stones.

The award ceremony took place during the National Bank of Rwanda 2023 Research Conference held at Kigali Convention Centre on June 1, 2023.

The March 2023 Master of Science in Economics graduate, whose research was titled, “Drivers of inflation during the pandemic: evidence from disaggregated consumption,” beat competitors from University of Rwanda and Kigali Independent University (ULK).

The winner and runner up were awarded laptops and government bonds by the National Bank of Rwanda (BNR).

Another University of Kigali Master of Science in Economics graduate of March 2023, Moses Mudaheranwa emerged among the 6 finalists and was awarded a certificate. The competition had 26 participants enrolled from the three participating Universities; University of Kigali, University of Rwanda and Kigali independent University.

The award ceremony took place during the National Bank of Rwanda 2023 Research conference held at the Kigali Convention Centre. Speaking during the conference, the National Bank of Rwanda Governor revealed that the inaugural research competition targeted a cohort of postgraduate students enrolled in accredited postgraduate programs in economics in Rwanda.

The supervisors, Dr. Afolabi Luqman and Dr. Kabanda Richard, University of Kigali Graduate School faculty in economics were also recognized. The Dean Graduate School, Dr. Kwena Ronald who was also present during the conference and award ceremony, appreciated the Faculty for mentorship of the students.

He noted that the School is privileged to have such highly qualified academic staff. Speaking on the sidelines of the conference, Dr. Kwena Ronald, the Dean Graduate School revealed that the University of Kigali Graduate School has shifted its focus to producing quality research. “This achievement shows the results of the quality of research we are targeting to produce,” he emphasized.

The competition was aimed at bridging the gap between academia and applied research hence creating a pool of young economists capable of contributing to evidence – based policymaking in Rwanda’s economic development.

Founded last year by T4 Education and HP in collaboration with Microsoft, the Africa Education Medal is Africa’s most prestigious education accolade.

The Africa Education Medal was established to recognise the tireless work of those who are transforming education across the continent – to celebrate the stories of those who have lit the spark of change so others will be inspired to take up the torch. It is given to an outstanding individual who has demonstrated impact, leadership, and advocacy in the field of education.

Rogers Patrick Kamugisha is the Country Director of Educate! in Rwanda, the largest youth skills provider in East Africa. Educate! tackles youth unemployment by partnering with schools and governments to equip young people in Africa with the skills to attain further education, overcome gender inequities, start businesses, get jobs, and drive development in their communities.

Hailed as a visionary leader, Kamugisha is an educator and an economist with over 10 years’ experience working in the Rwandan education system. He joined Educate! in 2015 to support its launch in Rwanda and subsequently assisted the organisation’s expansion into Kenya and Tanzania. He now oversees a team of 50 working tirelessly to implement Educate!’s teacher training and support model in the 30 districts of Rwanda.

Under his leadership, Educate! partnered with the Rwandan government on the country’s national curriculum reform efforts, focused on curriculum design and project-based assessment.

The results of a randomised controlled trial of Educate!’s two-year teacher training and support model showed participating teachers were 19% more likely to use active instruction techniques, and six months after graduation students were twice as likely to enroll in university, with a 167% increase in university enrolment for girls.

Kamugisha’s unwavering commitment to sustainability and long-term behaviour change in education practices has resulted in the implementation of innovations in Rwanda such as student business clubs and a new software platform, the Comprehensive Assessment Management Information System (CAMIS).

CAMIS enables teachers to continuously monitor students’ progress, incorporating project-based assessments and moving away from traditional reliance solely on exams. The data is uploaded to a central database at the national level, allowing for a detailed overview of student outcomes.

As a former teacher and National Master Trainer on skills-based education, Kamugisha has a unique affinity for educators in the region and understands the challenges they face. He has personally trained over 500 teachers on competency-based curriculum best practices, helped governments to develop education materials, and his work has had a significant impact on the quality of education in East Africa.

Kamugisha is a passionate advocate for education reform and providing opportunities for skills-based learning, having lacked these opportunities as a student growing up in Uganda. He uses his platform to raise awareness about the importance of skills-based education, giving lectures to university students about the value of entrepreneurship and working alongside the UN Industrial Development Organisation to introduce the subject of entrepreneurship in Rwanda. He sees that a quality education must go beyond theory and encompass practical experience. It is his firmly held belief that if young people are given the right support and mentorship, the economy will benefit from the entrepreneurs and leaders of the future.

Meanwhile, Jean-Claude Nkulikiyimfura is Executive Director of Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village (ASYV) in Rwanda, an organisation that empowers orphaned and vulnerable youth to build lives of dignity and contribute to a better world.

Nkulikiyimfura was born a refugee in Burundi. His parents were both orphaned and fled Rwanda in 1961, but taught their children that they would one day return to Rwanda and restore justice and dignity for all. Nkulikiyimfura did exactly that after the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi and began working to fulfil this promise.

Nkulikiyimfura first visited the ASYV campus in 2010, where he met a student named Fabien, a genocide survivor and orphan who inspired him with his determination.

This experience led him to enter the non-profit sector and work for ASYV in hopes of helping students like Fabien build dignified and self-reliant lives. The students of ASYV remind Nkulikiyimfura of his own parents; they have grit, resilience, and hope for a better future.

Nkulikiyimfura leads ASYV in its mission to empower vulnerable Rwandan youth to heal, build lives of dignity, and contribute to a better world. ASYV has provided 1,200 youth ages 14–21, including 500 current students, with secondary school education, medical and mental health services, extracurricular activities, and a loving family environment.

These services were designed to meet the complex needs of genocide survivors, and under Nkulikiyimfura’s leadership have continued to enable hundreds of the nation’s most at-risk young people to complete secondary school and access tertiary education and employment.

Among ASYV’s current first-year students, 63% have lost one or both parents, 65% come from households living in poverty, and 5% are refugees. In recognition of girls’ heightened vulnerabilities to leaving school, 62% of students are girls and 38% are boys. The results of the programme have been phenomenal. Over 60% of graduates have attended higher education, compared with 7% of young people nationally, while 44%, nearly twice the national average for youth, are employed, self-employed or interning.

Nkulikiyimfura also works to strengthen education in Rwanda nationally through ASYV’s Educational Resilience Programme (ERP). A groundbreaking partnership between the public, private, and non-profit sectors, the ERP is training upper- and lower-secondary school teachers from across Rwanda in digital education technology and life skills education concepts like mental health, gender equity, and sexual and reproductive health. The ERP has already impacted over 60,000 students.

His vision for ASYV has guided the organisation in its work to achieve several strategic goals, including digitising all curricula, developing vocational training based on national economic need and opportunity, closing gender-based gaps in programming, and developing a new trauma-informed curriculum that will train staff members to provide students with the emotional support they need to thrive. This work is enhancing learning outcomes and helping students build supportive relationships with their peers and educators.

Commenting on the selection of finalists, Vikas Pota, Founder and CEO of T4 Education, said: “Africa’s teachers and school leaders, and its leaders of governments, NGOs and businesses, all play a crucial part in unlocking the continent’s potential through quality education. African education stands at a crossroads in the wake of the pandemic, but if leaders from across the continent in every field can work together then they can build the lasting change needed.”

Below are top 10 finalists for the Africa Education Medal

● Mary Ashun, Principal of Ghana International School, Ghana

● Laura Kakon, Chief Growth & Strategy Officer of Honoris United Universities, Morocco

● Rogers Kamugisha, Country Director of Educate!, Rwanda

● Grace Matlhape, CEO of SmartStart, South Africa

● Mary Metcalfe, former policymaker and CEO of Programme to Improve Learning Outcomes (PILO), South Africa

● Martha Muhwezi, Executive Director of FAWE, Uganda

● Jean-Claude Nkulikiyimfura, Executive Director of Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village, Rwanda

● Simi Nwogugu, CEO of JA Africa, Nigeria

● Sara Ruto, Former Chief Administrative Secretary of Kenya’s Ministry of Education and former CEO of PAL Network, Kenya

● Snehar Shah, CEO of Moringa School, Kenya

Nominations for the Africa Education Medal opened in February 2023 for individuals working to improve pre-kindergarten, K-12, vocational and university education who are either educators, school administrators, civil society leaders, public servants, government officials, political leaders, technologists, or innovators.

The winner of the Africa Education Medal will be announced in July. Finalists will be assessed by a Jury comprising prominent individuals based on rigorous criteria.

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On March 1, 2023, University of Kigali’s Board of Directors appointed Professor David Karungu Wang’ombe as Vice- Chancellor, while Prof. Felix Maringe was appointed Deputy Vice Chancellor – Academic on October 1, 2022.

Both are not new in the academic field since they have been working with various highly-esteemed academic institutions in the region, South Africa and the UK, which sums up their readiness for the job awaiting them at UoK.

Few days ahead of the 7th graduation ceremony due to take place at the Intare Conference Arena on 3rd March 2023, both members of the university’s management team spoke to IGIHE about their prospects.

For Prof. Wang’ombe, joining University of Kigali’s leadership was a dream fulfilled in his quest to take African education to the next level.

“I have had a chance to see the plans and vision of the University of Kigali, and that motivated me to consider the possibilities of working with this university. So, I was delighted when the Board of Directors appointed me as vice chancellor, and shared in my personal vision of developing the capacity of the youth attending the university,” he said.

In his new journey, Prof Wang’ombe will be focusing on what should be four pillars of modern university namely; excellence in teaching and learning, research by building new knowledge, community engagement and making a difference in the lives of people.

“Achieving that requires excellence in our organizations, excellence in our governance and high quality procedures that enable us to achieve those goals”, he added.

Once those foundations are laid, Prof. Wang’ombe believes that it will market the university in the international arena.

“It is my hope that we are able to carry sufficient international accreditation for all the pillars whether separately or together, so that we are recognized both internally and externally, as an institution that is committed to making a difference in the lives of people,” Prof. Wang’ombe said.

This will be an addition to existing programs that are already being implemented in University of Kigali, including allocating full scholarships to vulnerable students whose talents are remarkable.

“At this stage, I invite other institutions that would want to support students that are brilliant but cannot afford university education to come and join us in making this education available,” he appealed.

More than 1800 students are ready to graduate

On 3rd March 2023, the university will put more than 1,800 graduates on global markets in various fields such as Business Management, Economics, Education, Law, Computing and Information Technology, etc.

Prof. Maringe lauded the graduands, saying that they have been equipped with skills that are relevant to the global market.

“As our motto states, we prepare “labour for the future” and one of the things that characterizes our University is that all our students have to work hard to earn their grades, diplomas and degrees. That is a very important part of our training for the students and it has been held by employers as a great achievement. It is one of the things that we are very proud about,” he said.

Prof. Wangombe added that the graduands have been prepared for the world that is ahead of them.

“We have prepared these students to face the world that is ahead of them. They have not only passed the exams, but also have gone through the process of interaction, counseling, guiding them to know what life is all about, not just about the engagement in money-making exercises but being good citizens who can make a difference in the lives of people” he said.

The University of Kigali is one of the top-five universities in Rwanda. It is appreciated for its efforts in scaling up education, especially through research.

Having started operations in 2013, the university currently has two campuses; one in Kigali and the other in Musanze.