Thanking Mr Tillerson for his service on Twitter, Mr Trump said the new state secretary would do “a fantastic job”.
Mr Tillerson, a former chief executive of ExxonMobil, was only appointed to the job just over a year ago.
The president also nominated Gina Haspel to become the first woman director of the CIA.
A senior White House official told the BBC about the timing of the announcement: “The president wanted to make sure to have his new team in place in advance of the upcoming talks with North Korea and various ongoing trade negotiations.”
Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Tuesday, Mr Trump said his differences with Mr Tillerson came down to personal “chemistry”.
“We got along actually quite well, but we disagreed on things,” said the president.
“When you look at the Iran deal, I think it’s terrible. I guess he thought it was OK.
“I wanted to either break it or do something and he felt a little bit differently, so we were not really thinking the same.
“With Mike, Mike Pompeo, we have a very similar thought process. I think it’s going to go very well.
The signing ceremony took place on Monday between the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Amb. Claver Gatete and the Director-General of OFID, Suleiman Jasir Al-Herbish.
The loan will support the $262.32 million project to expand Nzove water treatment plant and Gihira II water treatment plant.
Under the project, water connections in Districts of Musanze, Rubavu, Muhanga, Nyagatare, Huye and Rusizi will be expanded.
Minister Gatete said that all resources have been collected and the next process is implementation.
“This project aims at distributing clean water to all in a sustainable manner, and sanitation services in different areas as well as other activities that will contribute to improvement of well-being of the people,” he explained.
OFID’s Suleiman said that on completion, the project will positively impact many Rwandans as clean water and sanitation is the foundation of sustainable development.
He said that OFID and Rwanda have good partnership as the fund has provided $100 million loan to use in different infrastructural development, one of which is construction of Bugesera International Airport.
The State Minister in Charge of Energy, Water and Sanitation, Germaine Kamayirese said that the project is part of implementation of Sustainable Development Goals which states that in 2030 all people from around the World will be having access to clean water and sanitation services.
She said that the four-year project will be implemented by Water and Sanitation Corporation (WASAC). The project will leave over 1.3 million people having access to clean water and 1.5 million people having access to sanitation services.
Mushikiwabo who is also the Government Spokesperson was speaking in Kigali on Tuesday in a press conference that revolved around different matters.
She said that violation of rights of Rwandan nationals living or working in Uganda started last year , denting relations of both countries.
“These problems started in Uganda where Rwandans faced hardships, some were imprisoned and others faced different troubles. Some were released and others are still imprisoned. Here in Rwanda we can’t destabilize a Ugandan, they are our relatives, we share many things, we share blood, we have relationships with many Ugandans,” she explained.
She said that when such problems take place, the government approaches the counterparts and discuss on their causes and ways to handle them.
Mushikiwabo said that Rwanda has observed that there is no reason for mistreatment of her citizens in Uganda.
“We as Rwanda, we didn’t notice any reason, we cannot wish to see a Ugandan person facing a problem in Rwanda,” she said.
“We wish to see both countries’ relationship back as normal. Our people need good relationship for their benefit,” she said.
Beatrice Mukabarenzi’s life has taken a dramatic turn since she enrolled in Gikuriro, a 5-year project of Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and the Netherlands Development Organization (SNV) with funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Beatrice, who lives in Sabaganga Village, Nyanza Cell, Gatenga sector in City of Kigali, belongs to the savings group Twisungane which means “join our hands to support each other.”
The primary school dropout is a mother of five who got married at age 19. Her husband used to be the sole breadwinner, and struggled to put food on the table. The family often skipped lunch or dinner, and even breakfast seemed an improbable dream. Caring for the children often meant watching them suffer from hunger, and Beatrice saw no way to change their situation.
“I had never dreamed of starting a small business because it was impossible,” Beatrice says. “I didn’t have food to cook. And the little we could find, I couldn’t cook it in a healthy way because I did not know all of that.”
She was introduced to the Gikuriro program through community health workers when they discovered that her 15-month-old was malnourished.
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“We were encouraged to cultivate vegetables on small spaces because we live in city where we do not have adequate land to practice agriculture. We were also taught how to cook healthy food for our children and for ourselves. The program encouraged us to form a savings group and, as a result, the Twisungane [savings] group was established in my village. I started by saving [30 cents] (250Rwfs) per week.”
Lack of financial services is a chronic problem for many people in rural Rwanda. They live far from banks and other financial institutions, have no collateral for loans, and may face cultural barriers to saving and using credit.
CRS’ savings group model encourages participants to pool their money so they can help each other meet basic needs and invest in income-generating activities. Most members take loans to pay for their family’s health insurance or to start small businesses.
Beatrice’s first loan was for about $12 (10,000Rwfs). With the money, she started a small business selling vegetables and fruits from a basket on the street.
Three months later, after she had paid back the money, she received a bigger loan of about $24 (20,000Rwfs) and was able to move her business from the street to a shop entrance. And a third loan of about $37 (30,000Rwfs) allowed her to rent the house where she now runs her business.
Today eatrice estimates her business to be worth Rwf70,000. She is able to rent a shop at Rwf20,000 per month basis.Beatrice not only sells her own goods, she buys goods from others to sell in her shop. The growth and stability she exhibited through her business investment earned community members’ trust.
“They sometimes give me some items to sell, and I pay back after I have sold them out,” Beatrice says.
As her income grew, the first thing she did was improve her children’s diet.
“I didn’t want them to eat a poor meal or skip a meal anymore,” she says.
And Beatrice is happy her shop is near their home so she can earn a living and still care for her children. She is determined to continue saving and take her business even further.
Rwanda Utilities and Regulatory Authority (RURA) Director-General, Lt Col Patrick Nyirishema said that the workshop is very important not just for Rwanda, the East African Region but also to the whole continent as a satellite is very critical and very important technology for communication.
He said that Africa is a continent that largely relies on satellites.
Nyirishema said that being able to launch a satellite, countries need first of all to understand and being ready to implement regulations.
“We have realized that the overall cost of launching satellite is going down. However it’s all just about the knowledge and the resources to launch a satellite,” he said.
The training is facilitated by experts from International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
“We are very privileged to have ITU which agreed to send experts to train so that they can have complete understanding of what is required to be able to success for launch of a satellite from process of starting point,” he said.
He said the workshop is addressing the problem of how to secure arbitral location and the process you go through to launch a satellite.
Nyirishema said that the satellite is very important for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be able to have the means to link the various parts of the World and to monitor development, targets, to be able to collect dairy information, analyse it and helps to inform laws and regulation and all development interventions as captured within the SDGs.
Akim Falou Dine, expert from ITU said that the future of Africa in having a satellite is very brilliant for communication because Africa is very big and can help to access communication and get connected to the World.
Akim emphasized that the satellite can help in the implementation of SDGs where a poor country can access direct information.
“The satellite can also benefit in tele-medicine, tele-education, for GPS and for agriculture, it’s really important,” he said.
African countries which have managed to send a satellite in the airspace are Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Egypt and Morocco.
Dr. Ali Simba, the Executive Secretary of East African Communication, a regional body in East African Community said that the region is looking at having a regional satellite and they are putting it in their strategic plan of the next three years to see what they can do to have own satellite for communication.
Rugege was speaking yesterday in Kigali while launching the five-day capacity building training among commercial courts judges, lawyers and legal representatives from financial institutions, banks and Rwanda Revenue Authority.
The training aims at equipping them with mediation knowledge and how it can be used in addressing commercial conflicts without necessarily going to courts of law.
“We want all problems solved amicably and mediated, because, we have observed that this system helps them to feel contented,” he said.
He said that in courts, both parties spend long periods and everyone on their side desire to win the case which he said is impossible.
“When they are going in courts, one must win the case and another one lose, most of the time losers do not agree with ruling decisions, as they also desire to win and end up with lasting conflicts. We want to reduce such cases and solve many problems amicably,” he explained.
He said that cases solved through mediation are still few.
“They are not more than 5%, but we wish them raised to 60%. For example in Trinidad and Tobago, a country that uses the system, in pilot phase of the system, 65% of the cases in first year were tried amicably,” he explained.
He said that in other countries that use the same system, 90% of cases are solved amicably and Rwanda wishes to apply same approach.
The President of Commercial High Court, Emmanuel Kamere said that the system is a good way to go as people contribute in solving their problems will help end backlogs in the justice system.
Foreign Affairs Minister and Government Spokesperson, Louise Mushikiwabo, has relayed the message of condolence to the families of the 17 Rwandans who were recently struck by lightning in Nyaruguru District & Gisagara.
In a press conference with the the local and international media this morning at Kigali Conventional Center, Mushikiwabo assured the bereaved of government support in addressing disaster consequences.
“I comfort Rwandans, families who lost their loved ones to lightning that struck on Saturday & Sunday; the government of Rwanda helped them as you may have seen. What happened is very sad; and we have to be cautious in this severe weather season.”
On Sunday, March 11, 2018; different officials from Nyaruguru district came together to comfort families of the 16 worshipers who were struck by lightning in the district.
The same day; around noon, another person was struck by lightning in Ndora sector, ADEPR Gisagara Church.
{{Related: [Lightning kills 14 worshipers in Nyaruguru->http://en.igihe.com/news/lightning-kills-14-worshipers-in-nyaruguru.html]
[Nyaruguru District to foot all medical bills for lightning survivors->http://en.igihe.com/news/nyaruguru-district-to-foot-all-medical-bills-for.html]}}
The Battle of the Bands, organised by Kigali Marriott Hotel in partnership with Mutzig and ABG, saw the Best Beat Band, Micho Band and Neptunez Band perform from 5pm till late. The partygoers took great pleasure in the performances of the best danceable and soul-satisfying songs by local and foreign artists.
Best Beat Band opened the party with songs like “Strength of a Woman” by Shaggy which fit well with women’s month.
Micho Band, widely known for helping artists in Primus Guma Guma Superstar contest, followed with a great selection of songs that sparked an upbeat atmosphere. The songs included “Grenade” by Bruno Mars; “I Want to Know What Love Is”, by Foreigner; “Iron Lion Zion” by Bob Marley and “Mirrors” by Justin Timberlake. The band was also saluted and joined by revellers in local danceable songs like “Nyaruguru” by Massamba Intore.
Neptunez Band, widely known for performing at Kigali Jazz Junction shows, took the stage around 9:40pm and played Jazz and Blues tunes amazingly. They also pleased the Battle attendees with songs like “Side to Side” by Ariana Grande ft Nicki Minaj; “One Love” by Bob Marley; “Joromi” by Simi; “Face to Face” by Charly & Nina; “Nyota Yako” by TID; and paid tribute to late Ugandan star Radio Mowzey with “Nakudata” by Goodlyfe Ft Omulangira Ssunna. They also performed local traditional song “Genda Rwanda Uri Nziza” by Orchestre Impala.
All three bands delighted and entertained, making it difficult to decide who should take first place. However, after each band’s one-hour non-stop performance, Neptunez Band became the clear favourite amongst the competitors and won the evening.
Kigali Marriott Hotel began operations in Kigali in 2016 and has since hosted a number of entertainment shows in addition to its state-of-the art hotel services and corporate social responsibility activities that include participating in monthly community work locally known as ‘Umuganda’, supporting the disadvantaged with health insurance premiums and visiting patients in hospitals.
The office of the President has announced the meeting, but nothing was revealed about the discussion between Kagame and Macron.
On the other side, Kagame and Narendra agreed on ways to use in empowering institutions in both countries and trade.
On the sidelines of the summit also President Kagame met with President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea.
In the ISA Summit, Kagame said that solar power is part of the answer to climate change. To speed adoption and get environmental benefits, it has to be as reliable and affordable as other energy sources.
He said that adopting it is not only to protect the environment, but also to protect people and their well-being.
This was announced by Mayor François Habitegeko, in an interview with IGIHE yesterday.
Habitegeko said that district and provincial officials joined Nyabimata Sector residents in the burial of 16 victims of the lightning.
The lightning struck 45 worshipers in total and killed 16 among them in Gihemvu Seventh Adventist Church.
Mayor Habitegeko said that Southern Governor, Marie Rose Mureshyankwano and other officials joined the community to bury the victims.
They were all laid in Mishungero cemetery in Nyabimata Sector where the incident took place.
“We discussed with their families and agreed to bury them in one cemetery and be able to support them in all processes for burial ceremony,” he said.
Officials also visited patients in different health centres and hospitals.
He added that all costs for treatment will be paid by the district.
Habitegeko explained that they are going to campaign for installation of lightning arresters in public places and buildings as a way to prevent any other incident.
He said that they are going to conduct an exercise to identify whether all schools have lightning arresters as well as to raise awareness among the general public about how to prevent lightning.
{{On the same subject: [Lightning kills 14 worshipers in Nyaruguru->http://en.igihe.com/news/lightning-kills-14-worshipers-in-nyaruguru.html] }}
