Under the theme ‘18 Years of Partnership in Policing: Towards a crime-free Village’, the activities will focus on promoting the crime-free village.
Started this Tuesday and expected to run until June 16th, 2018, the activities are part of the celebration of the force’s 18-year anniversary.
According to Police, human security and development activities as well as sensitization campaigns are a deliberate move to promote crime-free village model throughout the country, strengthen police-public partnerships as a sustainable tool for crime prevention and enhancing the wellbeing of communities.
{{Promoting the ‘crime-free Village’
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Police says that enhanced citizen participation in maintaining security as well as getting involved in human security initiatives lays a strong foundation that help to strengthen partnerships in crime prevention, support social programmes and support national efforts towards sustainable development.
“This year’s Police Week will mainly focus on providing solar energy systems to the disadvantaged families residing far from the national power grid, and construction of Village offices in identified crime free villages in all districts,” Police statement reads.
Under the week, over 3000 households will be connected with solar energy, construct and fully equip one Village office in each of the 30 districts. Each of the constructed Village office will also have Early Childhood Development (ECD) room and equipped with TV sets.
In preventing crimes, Police says that focus will mainly be put on narcotic drugs, gender based violence, house break-ins, trafficking in human being, corruption and promoting road safety.
The activities will be conducted in partnership with government ministries as well as other security organs, local entities and other community policing groups.
In City of Kigali, Police plans to engage in security and hygiene campaign to promote a clean, green and safe city.
“The campaign is partly designed to build stronger and functioning community policing committees, community night patrols, fight drug abuse, domestic violence, and noise pollution, sale of alcoholic drinks to minors, fire outbreak, public order management and promoting road security,” Police noted.
According to Police, last year’s anniversary activities were valued at about Rwf372 million.
Among the approved officials are; Rwanda Agricultural Board (RAB) Director General, Dr. Patrick Karangwa who took over the docket replacing Dr. Mark Cyubahiro Bagabe, sacked last month.
Previously, Karangwa served in RAB as the head of research department. He also served as the Acting Director General since January following the suspension of his predecessor Bagabe.
Other approved official is Jean Bosco Harerimana, the Director General of Rwanda Cooperative Agency (RCA) replacing Gilbert Habyarimana who, in November last year, was elected Rubavu District mayor.
Also approved is Bibiane Burayobera Umuzayire, the vice-president of Rwanda Law Reform Commission.
Senate approved the officials after following presentation of the Senate’s Committee on Political and Good Governance report which proved them capable of serving the dockets.
In RAB, Karangwa is anticipated to revitalize agriculture sector and issues in management which made the institution to annually register a qualified audit report by Auditor General.
For RCA’s Harerimana, different challenges including embezzlement of members’ funds in different cooperatives across the country are awaiting his handling.
Under the theme: “Contemporary Security Challenges: The African Perspective”, the primary aim of the symposium is to deliberate on matters of national, regional and continental security with a view to developing practical solutions.
The conference was officially opened on 14 May 2018 by Hon Minister of Defence, Gen James Kabarebe, the Guest of Honor in the opening ceremony, who reiterated that the symposium is an opportunity for college students and other participants to engage in discussions about the real-life security challenges that affect military profession.
“By the end of this Symposium, you will have not only gained the requisite knowledge and skills, but you will have also sharpened your awareness and readiness in your quest for better performance on the field, with clarity and understanding of the geo-political nature of contemporary regional and African security challenges.” he said
During the symposium, students of Senior Command and Staff Course (SCSC) intake 6, the beneficiaries of this gathering, will have an opportunity to interact with high level policy makers, security practitioners, subject matter experts and scholars of security studies in interactive discussions on security challenges in Africa.
The SCSC intake 06 is composed of 45 Senior Officers (Major to Lt Colonel) students from Czech Republic, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
As Rwandans, yesterday commemorated women and children that were slain on Kayumba hill of Nyamata sector, Bugesera district, CNLG recalled the violence against women and girls that constituted a tragically widespread component of the genocide and war strategy in 1994.
The 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi had very grave effects on top of the over a million that lost their lives. According to various reports, a number of women contracted the deadly HIV/AIDS due to rape from Genocide perpetrators. This subsequently had serious implications on human health and the Rwandan population in general.
According to the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR)’s survey that was conducted in 2007, a total of 309,368 survived the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi, with 58 % being female.
Although the female population was higher among survivors, Dr Bizimana remarked that it was not out of pity but a well-documented and tragically widespread component of the genocide and war strategy in 1994.
During the genocide, women and girls-predominantly survived or succumbed to extraordinary acts of violence. Many were raped at barriers erected by the interahamwe youth militia and/or held as sexual captives in exchange for temporary protection from interahamwe militia and the military. Their bodies and spirits were mutilated, humiliated and scarred.
“The impact of sexual violence perpetrated during the genocide is critical. Among survivors, 6321 women contracted HIV\AIDS, 10,3 % were left as widows, 21% were left as orphans and 7% were left with permanent disabilities.” Dr Bizimana said
He added that women and girls-predominantly were raped at barriers erected by the interahamwe youth militia, their bodies and spirits mutilated, humiliated and scarred.
Ibuka President in Nyamata sector, Dukuzumuremyi Eugene, said that on tragic memories were left on Kayumba hill, whereby 9000 lives were slain, leaving behind not more than 70 people.
“A very Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers of Rwanda, Africa, and the World! To the one special mother in our home, lives and our hearts of 4 children – Jeannette- Thank you forever, God bless..!!,” he wrote.
Following his tweet, First Lady of Rwanda, Jeannette Kagame, also celebrated Mother’s Day with a Twitter tribute for her family, being her ‘raison d’être’.
“Grateful for @PaulKagame, Ivan, Ange, Ian and Brian for being my ‘raison d’être’.” she tweeted
Mother’s Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, most commonly in the months of March or May. It complements similar celebrations honoring family members, such as Father’s Day, Siblings Day, and Grandparents Day.
In 1914, American President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation declaring the first national Mother’s Day
The world has made great strides in empowering women and girls in recent decades, and Rwanda has played its part. Good politics, legal reform, and policy frameworks have helped speed up this progress.
Taking place in Sierra Leone capital, Freetown, on 12th May 2018, the ceremony was attended by different Heads of State and Government among others, President George Weah of Liberia, First Lady of Gambia, among others.
Via his twitter account, Bernard Makuza announced that he had attended the Inauguration ceremony of the new President of Sierra Leone in Freetown.
“After the inauguration ceremonies, I paid a courtesy visit to the new President of Sierra Leone and delivered a personal message and a gift from his Rwandan counterpart President Paul Kagame.”, reads the tweet.
During the Inauguration Ceremony, President Bio vowed to be president for all Sierra Leoneans, to fight corruption and poverty and run the country in a “disciplined, honest and professional manner.”
Brigadier Julius Maada Bio was declared the winner and proclaimed as the president of the Republic of Sierra Leone, having pollied 1,319,406 – which is 51.82% of the total votes cast.
Rwanda and Sierra Leone enjoy good bilateral relations. Dr. Harebamungu Mathias was the first ambassador to Sierra Leone in October 2017.
According to Ndera Sector Executive Secretary, Francois Iyamuremye, whose identity was not readily revealed, who survived the genocide from inside the Ndera Neuropsychiatric Hospital (Craes) informed them that the hospital compound may contain mass graves.
The girl said that during the genocide, she heard people digging behind the house she was hiding in, and dumped dead bodies there.
Local officials acted on the information from the girl who currently lives in Canada, and exhumation activities started on Monday last week.
“From Monday to Saturday, we have been exhuming and today we have counted remains of 123 victims,” Iyamuremye said.
“We cannot affirm that these are the only victims that were dumped there, because the hospital had been using the pit for rain water harvesting. Possibly, some remains have totally decayed, especially of children. Exhumation activities continue, and there is another pit inside the hospital that we want to open,” he explained.
Iyamuremye said that exercise to search for more remains continues across the sector.
At Iwawa, youth acquired different skills including masonry, carpentry, tailoring, agriculture and veterinary among others.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony on Saturday, the Director General of National Rehabilitation Service (NRS), Aimé Bosenibamwe urged the youth to use acquired skills in developing themselves through working in cooperatives.
“There is a programme to receive those who graduate from here in districts; different officials are working to welcome you and will direct you in projects to establish, as a way to reintegrate you in the society, NRS in partnership with local government authorities will facilitate you in establishing associations and cooperatives through which you will perform income generating activities,” he explained.
After a year of being trained, the youth say that they acquired skills that will help them in future.
“I learnt masonry skills from here which will help me towards development. I abandoned drugs and will encourage former peers to abandon such vices,” said Jean Paul Gacamumakuba from Kicukiro District.
Cesalie Nyirantagorana, a parent whose child was rehabilitated, hailed the programme saying it was not possible for parents themselves to change the behaviors children had developed.
The cohort of 1,974 graduate is the 15th edition at Iwawa. Since the centre was established in 2010, over 15,000 have graduated from there.
The 14th edition of the marathon is scheduled for May 20 at a tune of Rwf73 million, reflecting a decrease by Rwf17 million from the last year’s spending.
According to Jean-Pierre Ndacyayisenga, the technical director of the Rwanda Athletics Federation (RAF), over 8,000 athletes including amateurs and professionals are expected to participate in this year’s marathon.
The participants will either compete in full marathon in a 42.195km distance or run for fun in 10km.
During the launch of the registration that took place at Kigali Cultural Village, the local athletics governing body’s representative, Fidèle Mubirigi highlighted the progress made in preparations and success the marathon has registered over the past years.
During the ceremony, the roadmap of preparations and registration for local, regional and international participants, as well as courses of the two categories of competitions, run for fun and full-marathon races was successfully unveiled.
“In the past years, MTN Rwanda was our main supporter, other sponsors were not big enough, but now we are very excited about this year’s edition because we have been graced with some of the biggest sponsors in our country like Skol, RwandAir, BK and other sponsors. It is a great move for us because it will facilitate us in launching the best Kigali International Peace Marathon ever seen,” Mubirigi said.
Alain Numa, the Sponsorship and Promotion Coordinator at MTN Rwanda, expressed gladness for the new sponsors, saying that MTN Group is ready to work hand in hand with other sponsors to support the Kigali International Peace Marathon.
“This will be our fourth year supporting Kigali International Peace Marathon. Although we are investors, we also try to support the government in all ways possible. It is also a way to use sports in fostering good relations between countries,” he said.
Participants register with the payment of Rwf2000 via MTN line using the code *182*3*505050*2000#, or by visiting the nearest MTN branch.
Sprawled across the Cap-Verde Peninsula, in the far west of Africa on the Atlantic Ocean, Dakar is the grand capital of Senegal also commonly known as “le Paris d’Afrique” due to the modernized changes the former French colonial city went through.
From Kigali on the RwandAir’s feel and experience touch, the travel proved relaxing and refreshing. The homey feeling I received from flight attendants made me feel like I was practically at my neighbor next door, with the sole difference being on a moving aircraft.
It was 13- hour entertaining flight as RwandAir flew from Cotonou-Bénin, Douala-Cameroon, Abidjan-Côte d’Ivoire to finally land in Dakar. You’d wonder why I said entertaining –well, Joseph, the waiter was ever so charming while making sure that I missed nothing, and I was no exception for he did so with everyone. From tea to water; everything I was given beheld Rwanda’s imprint, the only thing I may have not yet checked is the provenance of the tasteful fish I ate, although I would bet it was from Rubavu’s waters. A generous applause goes to RwandAir’s team.
Arrived at my destination, I reveled at the beauty of the exotic capital of Senegal. The catching beauty was not really in its architecture nor the dusty streets or the roads collapsed by traffic: but rather in its atmosphere and cheerful people.
It is a friendly city with a very complex native language known as ‘Wolof’. I would even say that anyone would get a bit lost trying to understand this language. During my stay, I tried to learn some of it; like saying I’m good is ‘Maa ngi fi’ [Spelled as Mængiːfiː], saying Yes is ‘waaw’ [Spelled as Wæwu], Saying ‘My name is Philbert’ is ‘Maa ngi tudd Philbert’ [Spelled as Mængiːtudu].
As I toured the country, here are some of the places that make the nation so singular and that will definitely mark you if you ever decide to travel to Senegal.
{{La Maison des esclaves in Goree Island
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Goree Island is a small 45-acre island located off the coast of Senegal that is only three kilometers away from Dakar. This quiet and quaint island was a prominent place for the development of Atlantic slavery trade and served as a center for expanding slavery trade by the Europeans.
The island which is considered as a memorial to the African Diaspora had over 20 million African slaves passing through it between the mid-1500s and the mid-1800s. During the African slavery trade, Goree Island was a slave-holding warehouse where African men, women and children were jailed before being shipped to the Americas.
The slave house that was built to keep the slaves had a small door called the “door of no return” through which every man, woman and child walked to the slave boat to be taken to the ‘New World’. The slave house built in 1776 remains intact to this day with cells and shackles, and is a major tourist attraction of Goree Island.
Chosen to be a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Goree Island still retains and preserves all the traces of its terrible past and displays to the world the miserable life once led by their ancestors.
{{African Renaissance Monument
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The African Renaissance Monument, also referred to as Monument to the African Renaissance, is a bronze statue perched on Mamelles hill in Dakar, Senegal. The representation of a man, woman and child emerging from a volcano stands erect against the skyline in Senegal at 164 feet high, taller than the Statue of Liberty in the U.S.A.
Visiting this place will only cost you 4000 CFA which is Rwf6500 and you are free to roam around and inside this monument.
The monument that was built by the former president Abdoulaye Wade in 2010 is about the culture and future of the African continent. It’s represented by a man and his wife together holding the hand of the young one, which means the next century is better than the past. The whole monument encompasses all generations for the future of the continent.
Upon entering, the “lobby” of the monument has a distinct presentation dealing with African, and African diaspora history, covering various renowned leaders such as Léopold Senghor or Toussaint Louverture and various historically important events such as the slavery trade or colonialism.
{{You cannot just leave without saying Hi to Saly…
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Saly is a beach resort area in the Petite Côte region of Senegal. A former Portuguese trading post, Saly Portugal village features restaurants and bars.
It is the “Rubavu” of Rwanda. It is one of the touristic resorts in Dakar and detains a much more relaxed energy than the center of the capital.
It is relatively clean and quiet. It is usually full of young people playing with street vendors and families.
A piece of advice would be that you stack some pants, since everyone in Senegal covers their legs pretty much. Also, the wind blows practically everything…dresses and skirts not spared.
To finish, le “Paris d’Afrique” may not be the most beautiful place on earth or a holiday destination for those seeking comfort but it has everything for a fascinating experience as a whole. You will be rendered speechless by the epic vistas of a gorgeously tropical and stunning natural beauty that is Africa.
