Emmanuel Mutabazi bagged a bronze medal for Rwanda after finishing third, with a time of one hour, four minutes, and 27 seconds, during the 19th edition of the Global Elite Label men’s half marathon. Kenyan runner Francis Kipkorir Langat claimed the first position with a time of one hour, four minutes and four seconds, followed by his compatriot Leonard Kipkoech Langat who finished second with a time of one hour, four minutes and 24 seconds.
The winners were awarded $5,000, $4,000, and $3,000 in prize money.
In the women’s half marathon category, Emeline Imanizabayo was awarded a bronze medal after finishing the race in one hour, 14 minutes and two seconds. The gold and silver medals went to Kenya’s Winfridah Moraa Moseti and her compatriot Vivian Jepkogel Cheruiyot, who ran in 1:12:50 and 1:14:01, respectively.
It was a podium sweep for Kenya in the full marathon category, with Laban Kipngetich Korir, Cornelius Kibet Kiplagat, and Moses Mengich taking the top three positions. Kipkorir clocked 2:16:06 to lead the clean podium sweep, followed by Kibet (2:16:18) and Mengich (2:18:38).
In the female category, Joan Kipyatich and Florence Chepsoi Jepkosgei, both from Kenya, walked home with gold and bronze after running 2:33:27 and 2:39:34, respectively. The silver went to Ethiopia’s Abebayehu Meseret, who finished second in 2:36:08.
The annual sports event is organised by the Rwanda Athletics Federation (RAF) in partnership with the Ministry of Sports, to promote peace and athletic excellence on a global stage.
The 19th edition of the marathon attracted a total of 10,183 participants from 35 countries, including 4,001 foreign participants. This is the highest number of participants since the marathon’s inception in 2005.
Those who attended the event included Minister of Sports Aurore Mimosa Munyangaju, Minister of Local Government, Jean Claude Musabyimana, Mayor of the City of Kigali, Samuel Dusengiyumva, and President of the Rwanda Athletics Federation (RAF), Lt Col (Rtd) Kayumba Lemuel, among others.
Also present were First Daughter Ange Kagame and Clare Akamanzi, the CEO of NBA Africa, who participated in the 10-kilometer ‘Run for Peace’.
Speaking during her swearing-in ceremony at State House in Juba, South Sudan, on Friday, June 7, Nduva said strong economic integration would encourage innovation, entrepreneurship and job creation.
“Your Excellencies, in promoting peace and security, a secure East Africa is the foundation upon which we can build lasting prosperity,” the new SG stated amid concerns that the conflict in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) [threatens security in the Great Lakes region->https://en.igihe.com/news/article/amb-munyuza-warns-fdlr-poses-significant-security-threat-for-great-lakes-region].
Nduva took the oath of office during the 23rd Extra-Ordinary Meeting of the EAC Heads of State that was held virtually and chaired by Salva Kiir Mayardit, the Chairperson of the Summit and President of South Sudan.
Nduva, who comes from Kenya, is the first woman to become EAC’s Secretary General.
She disclosed that advanced social development would also be a priority for her with special attention being given to empowering women and youth who are the backbone of the society in the region.
The new SG will also prioritise infrastructure development in the region, stating that the sector will require innovative financing solutions and strengthened public-private partnerships (PPPs).
“To promote climate resilient growth, we will continue addressing the pressing challenges of climate change collectively as a region. This includes promoting green energy, sustainable agriculture, conservation efforts and resource mobilisation as a bloc,” she added.
She emphasized that improving coordination between various organs and institutions would be crucial for fulfilling the mandate.
The new SG also promised to promote a culture of transparency, accountability, and inclusivity within the Community.
Nduva replaces Peter Mutuku Mathuki who was recalled by Kenya in March 2024 and redeployed as the country’s Ambassador to Moscow.
Prior to her appointment as SG, Nduva served as the Principal Secretary in the State Department for Performance and Delivery Management in the Office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary and Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Musalia Mudavadi.
The Rwanda Classified project coordinated by Forbidden Stories, a platform run by Freedom Voices Network, alleges widespread silencing of local journalists. However, seasoned Rwandan journalists, who spoke to IGIHE, had no kind words for the faces behind the narrative.
Kigali Today journalist Edmund Kagire who has been practising in the local media for the last 17 years said the malicious accusations are not new.
“What we saw is a regurgitation of the same accusations, the same things only that they come with different sort of language. But at the end of the day these are the same accusations differently dressed and endorsed by one of our own, who left the country the other day,” Kagire said while referring to investigative journalist Samuel Baker Byansi at the centre of the Rwanda Classified project.
He added, “Everybody knows what he is up to and people have been responding to him and him being part of the project. I don’t know if it’s a positive for the authors of the report, maybe they could have done a little bit of research to find out his history and track record. He is not one person you are going to rely on. If you look at his tweets a few years back, not more than two years ago, they portray a totally different image of what he says Rwanda is.”
While acknowledging that there were areas to improve, he insisted that over his nearly two-decade career, he has never been coerced by the powers that be to drop a story.
“We are not saying Rwanda is a bed of roses they say even a bed of roses has thorns. The media, just like any other sector in Rwanda, is a work in progress,” the scribe noted, adding that Rwanda was a target of propaganda from foreign actors with vested interests.
“I think when you are a bit progressive in what you are doing people pay attention and some people might not be impressed by the progress you are making and they try to stain it. In a way, it’s a good thing. I think it keeps us in check. It’s not just the media even the government gets all those sorts of reports. They have been resilient, they have carried on. Even as journalists, we have to be resilient in the midst of all these accusations.”
Marie Louise, a journalist with Intego News, believes most foreign journalists have a distorted view of Rwanda. She attributes this to a lack of understanding of the country’s complex social context and its painful history, particularly the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The horrific event, which claimed the lives of over a million people, was the culmination of decades of ethnic tensions fueled by Belgian colonial rule.
“If you are in a country, you need to understand the context, the society, and the culture. If you combine all of this, you know what to do as a journalist. Because always, when you are in America, you can say you are independent. When you reach here in Rwanda, you can say you are not independent because of the different fields of operations,” she said adding that she has never received threats from “officials” in the current administration to kill a story.
Rwanyange Rene Anthere, the Managing Editor of Panorama, highlighted the importance of journalists practising self-censorship when handling extremely sensitive topics that could cause harm to society. He insisted, however, that he could not be subject to censorship by the state.
“In the line of my career, no one has told me or forced me to drop my story,” he stated.
Rwanda Media Commission (RMC) is the body responsible for media self-regulation in Rwanda.
The institution is charged with enforcing the journalistic code of ethics, acting as the primary and highest adjudicator of complaints against the media, representing the broader interests of journalists, and defending media freedom and media consumers in general.
Mugisha Emmanuel, the Executive Secretary of RMC, told IGIHE that since the establishment of the media policy in 2011, the institution has made huge strides in bringing order in the crucial sector.
“Where we are today as media, there is a leap that we’ve made, basing on the existing laws, the existing legal frameworks, basing on the existing infrastructure, basing on the school of journalism that we never had before, that we now have, basing on different engagement initiatives that I’m telling you about, like that one whereby we initiated, we initiated that session where we have media and security organs meet to discuss. This is what we need to improve so that we can do our service to the public better and also contribute to nation-building. It’s nowhere across the globe,” Mugisha said.
Mugisha dismissed the Rwanda Classified stories as fake news, insisting that the claims made in the reports were not anchored on any facts.
“When you look at what is being spread in those media houses and what the 50 people and the 17 media houses met, they were discussing about. In my view, they lack verified facts about what they’re saying. If I would put it in one word, that is fake news. That is misinforming…Maybe people are judging us from where they sit and not with our own context. That is very wrong,” he said.
“Let them come, investigate, do their own stories. Don’t sit wherever you sit and agree that this narrative they want to spread about Rwanda and confuse the whole world because you have the platform. Media isn’t supposed to be used like that. Media has ethics that govern how to feed the public. If you don’t follow that, then you’re becoming a misinformer, you’re becoming something else, not a journalist.”
Poking holes in Samuel Becker’s perspective about the Rwandan media environment, Mugisha noted, “Maybe if they can come up with facts that are verified, with authentic sources, and they publish whatever they are saying without bias, with objectivity, and not subjective to harming ABCD, I think their stories can be given credibility. But as of now, I doubt.”
RwandAir flies this route three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The return flights from Paris to Kigali depart Paris at 3:30 pm and arrive in Kigali at 6:00 am the next day.
During the launch of the first flight to Paris in June 2023, Yvonne Makolo, the CEO of RwandAir, highlighted the importance of this new milestone for the company and for the relations between France and Rwanda.
She stated, “This new route is of great importance to RwandAir and to Rwanda, as it connects Rwanda to the rest of Africa and to France. It is a long-term project that we have worked on in collaboration with various partners.”
Makolo also indicated that this route constitutes an excellent market, efficiently connecting Africa and Europe, with Kigali as the central hub.
This destination complements the other routes already operated by RwandAir, thus offering travelers from Paris the opportunity to continue their journey to other African countries via Kigali.
RwandAir does not just transport passengers; it plays a crucial role in connecting people, families, and various activities.
Passengers also benefit from the tourism opportunities offered by Kigali, thus contributing to the local economy through the purchase of products and services.
On May 28, 2024, IGIHE reporter Karirima Ngarambe met with passengers on board the RwandAir flight on this route to evaluate the evolution of this service a year after its launch.
The passengers, predominantly Africans, expressed their pride in traveling with RwandAir, highlighting the quality of service and the cleanliness of the aircraft, comparable to other airlines.
A Rwandan passenger stated, “This is the fruit of good governance; boarding the Rwandan airline’s plane, it feels like being at home. When I arrive in Paris from America, I take RwandAir, and I feel like I’m already in Rwanda as soon as I board and greet the people in Kinyarwanda.”
RwandAir uses modern and spacious aircraft, ensuring optimal comfort for all passengers, regardless of their travel class.
The multilingual staff, proficient in English, French, and Kinyarwanda, provide quality service to all passengers.
Three factors encourage travelers to choose this route: the excellent services of RwandAir, the time saved on stopovers, and the possibility of resting in a hotel offered by RwandAir if necessary. For example, a flight from Paris to Kigali can quickly continue to Cotonou, Benin, avoiding long waits (a maximum of 45 minutes for the stopover).
RwandAir flights are in high demand, with load factors consistently between 85% and 100%. Since operating with only 12 aircraft in 2017, RwandAir transported 765,000 passengers. In 2024, with an expanded fleet of 14 planes, they anticipate carrying around 1.1 million passengers.
The company continues to expand its operations, serving more than 28 destinations in Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia.
In 2021, an agreement with Qatar Airways added 65 Arab destinations to its network, with direct flights from Kigali to Doha.
In addition to passengers, RwandAir also focuses on cargo. In late 2022, it acquired a Boeing B737-800SF freighter, capable of transporting at least 23,904 tons, thus meeting the growing demand for freight transportation.
In the coming years, with the completion of the Bugesera International Airport, RwandAir plans to multiply its flights by five. This airport is expected to accommodate 8.2 million passengers and 150,000 tons of cargo per year in its first phase, with its capacity doubling in the long term.
Speaking during the 60th anniversary of the National Bank of Rwanda (NBR) on Friday, June 7, the PM said the central bank had accomplished “great work” over the last six decades, contributing significantly to the growth development of the economy.
“I would like to invite investors to take advantage of the conducive business environment in Rwanda and consider investing in our financial and banking sectors,” Ngirente stated at the event where he represented President Paul Kagame.
According to Ngirente, the central bank’s sound policies have helped the country achieve sustained and broad-based economic growth, leading to a slight increase in GDP per capita over the last thirty years and a halving of the poverty rate during the same period.
He noted that the inclusive economic development of the country has led to even more achievements in the social sectors, promoting the well-being of citizens as witnessed in the increase of life expectancy from 29 years in 1994 to 69.6 in 2022.
“We all recognize that this development would not have been possible without effective coordination of our monetary policies and regulation of our financial systems in general,” the PM noted.
“Indeed, this coordination is commendable and has played a key role in maintaining a stable and well-regulated macroeconomic environment. And we thank the Central Bank for that.”
In order to address emerging risks including uncontrolled use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), money laundering and cybercrimes in financial institutions, the Prime Minister challenged Central Banks and other financial institutions to constantly update their regulatory tools and stay alert to counter these threats.
He also emphasized the need for Central Banks to build their own capacity and understanding to address global geopolitical and climate change challenges, saying the emerging issues have made forecasting future economic variables more complex.
Speaking at the same event, Central Bank Governor John Rwangombwa affirmed that Rwanda’s financial landscape has witnessed tremendous growth over the last three decades, evolving from seven financial institutions before 1994, to a thriving sector today, with 11 banks, 461 microfinance institutions, 12 pension schemes, 18 insurers, 33 payment service providers, 78 foreign currency dealers,50 non-deposit-taking financial institutions, and a credit reference bureau.
“This growth is reflected in a twenty-one-fold increase in the financial assets of our financial institutions from 500 billion in 2006 to 10.5 trillion last year in 2023, and a twenty-two-fold increase in credit to the private sector from 177 billion to 4.2 trillion, over the same period,” he said, adding, “As our financial sector developed, we transitioned to a forward-looking, price-based monetary policy in 2019 to better achieve our inflation goals. Rwanda’s economic performance remained strong, maintaining an average inflation of 5.9% from 2006-2020.”
NEC Chairperson, Oda Gasinzigwa, approved the candidature of three candidates and rejected bids from six others, citing noncompliance with electoral guidelines.
Those who met the criteria include Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) chairman and incumbent president Paul Kagame, the leader of the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda, Frank Habineza, and Mbayimana Philippe, who is running for the presidency on an independent ticket.
Six independent candidates, who had expressed interest in the country’s top seat, had their candidature invalidated for various reasons.
Herman Manirareba had his nomination rejected after he failed to submit a list of 600 registered voters supporting his candidature, in line with the commission’s requirements. To qualify to run for the presidency in Rwanda, a candidate must submit a list of 12 registered voters supporting their candidacy from 30 districts across five provinces.
NEC said Innocent Hakizimana submitted voter lists from 28 districts, falling short of two districts. Fred Sekikubo Barafinda’s nomination was invalidated for lacking a valid doctor’s certificate and signatures from twelve districts.
On the other hand, Thomas Habimana suffered a setback in his bid to be president after he failed to provide a list of 12 voters supporting his candidacy from five districts.
Diane Nshimyimana Rwigara, the only woman interested in the race, did not provide a criminal record certificate, citizenship certificate, and a list of voters from eight districts. The law requires that a person running for president must be a Rwandan citizen by origin, with at least one parent being a citizen of Rwanda. The candidate must not hold dual citizenship.
Jean Mbanda only provided a list of signatures from three districts out of the 30 required by the commission.
The law requires that all incomplete documents be submitted before the final list is published on June 14.
The NEC boss, however, announced that the list of voters supporting a candidate cannot be submitted after May 30, 2024, which was the deadline for submitting candidatures. This locks out all six candidates from the much-anticipated poll.
Regarding the parliamentary election, the commission approved lists submitted by six political parties, adding that only one independent candidate met the criteria.
Additionally, NEC approved the list of 181 Women parliamentary candidates, 23 Youth Parliamentary candidates, and seven candidates representing persons with disabilities.
The final list of approved candidates will be unveiled on June 14, with the official electoral campaign period scheduled to commence on June 22.
The initiative rolled out on Wednesday, June 5, 2024, makes the legalization process for public documents such as birth certificates, marriage certificates and death certificates faster, simpler, and digitized through the use of electronic Apostilles (e-Apostilles).
“Rwandan documents intended for use abroad will be processed digitally and accessible through the Irembo e-government platform [https://irembo.gov.rw->https://irembo.gov.rw]. Foreign documents apostilled abroad will be directly usable in Rwanda,” officials said, adding, “This initiative aligns with Rwanda’s efforts to deliver digital and citizen-centred public services.”
Additionally, the Irembo portal has expanded its services to include:
-Legalization of Power of Attorney for property transfer
-Issuance of diplomatic plate numbers
-Recommendation letters for Rwandans abroad for land-related services
-Issuance of Note-Verbale for Rwandan officials on official missions
Notably, the new e-Apostilles service is only available to members of the Hague Apostille Convention.
The members are:
#
Country
1
Albania
2
Andorra
3
Antigua and Barbuda
4
Argentina
5
Armenia
6
Australia
7
Austria
8
Azerbaijan
9
Bahamas
10
Bahrain
11
Barbados
12
Belarus
13
Belgium
14
Belize
15
Bolivia (Plurinational State of)
16
Bosnia and Herzegovina
17
Botswana
18
Brazil
19
Brunei Darussalam
20
Bulgaria
21
Burundi
22
Cabo Verde
23
Canada
24
Chile
25
China
26
Colombia
27
Cook Islands
28
Costa Rica
29
Croatia
30
Cyprus
31
Czech Republic
32
Denmark
33
Dominica
34
Dominican Republic
35
Ecuador
36
El Salvador
37
Estonia
38
Eswatini
39
Fiji
40
Finland
41
France
42
Georgia
43
Germany
44
Greece
45
Grenada
46
Guatemala
47
Guyana
48
Honduras
49
Hungary
50
Iceland
51
India
52
Indonesia
53
Ireland
54
Israel
55
Italy
56
Jamaica
57
Japan
58
Kazakhstan
59
Kosovo
60
Kyrgyzstan
61
Latvia
62
Lesotho
63
Liberia
64
Liechtenstein
65
Lithuania
66
Luxembourg
67
Malawi
68
Malta
69
Marshall Islands
70
Mauritius
71
Mexico
72
Monaco
73
Mongolia
74
Montenegro
75
Morocco
76
Namibia
77
Netherlands
78
New Zealand
79
Nicaragua
80
Niue
81
North Macedonia
82
Norway
83
Oman
84
Pakistan
85
Palau
86
Panama
87
Paraguay
88
Peru
89
Philippines
90
Poland
91
Portugal
92
Republic of Korea
93
Republic of Moldova
94
Romania
95
Russian Federation
96
Rwanda
97
Saint Kitts and Nevis
98
Saint Lucia
99
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
100
Samoa
101
San Marino
102
Sao Tome and Principe
103
Saudi Arabia
104
Senegal
105
Serbia
106
Seychelles
107
Singapore
108
Slovakia
109
Slovenia
110
South Africa
111
Spain
112
Suriname
113
Sweden
114
Switzerland
115
Tajikistan
116
Tonga
117
Trinidad and Tobago
118
Tunisia
119
Türkiye
120
Ukraine
121
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
The retail price for gasoline decreases by RWF 101, to retail at RWF 1,663 per litre for the next two months, while diesel will retail at RWF 1,652, down from RWF 1,684.
The new pump prices will take effect at 9:00 pm on Wednesday.
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“These adjustments are based on recent fluctuations in international petroleum product prices,” RURA Director General Rugigana Evariste explained.
New fuel pump prices for the next two months, effective from 05 June 2024, at 9:00PM. pic.twitter.com/jlTHENxOro
Before the last review in April, which saw the retail price of fuel revised upwards, gasoline was priced at RWF 1,637 per litre, and diesel at RWF 1,632 per litre.
Brent crude oil averaged $90 per barrel in April with the conflict between Ukraine and Russia exacerbating the oil market’s instability.
The price of Brent oil per barrel has been fluctuating ever since to retail at $77.1 on Tuesday, May 4, 2024. Further, the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Crude Oil plummeted by 1.5 per cent to retail at $73, down from the $77.3 on Monday.
Last month, the price of Brent oil was around $85 per barrel, while WTI oil prices hit $81 in May.
The Head of State, credited with spearheading various policy and economic transformations in Rwanda, was honoured during his trip to South Korea, where he attended the inaugural Korea-Africa Summit.
“I would like to thank you for the tremendous honour you have bestowed on me and my country with the award of this honorary doctorate,” Kagame stated in his acceptance speech.
“This is my fourth visit to Korea but my first to the Yonsei campus, I wish that our connection had started much earlier,” he added.
In his speech, President Kagame emphasized the importance of public policy in nation-building, especially in the aftermath of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, saying, “The purpose of public policy is to make our citizens safe, united, free, creative, and prosperous, more or less in that order.”
“We inherited a country that was completely broken and devastated physically, financially, and spiritually. Our people were displaced and divided. Establishing security was our first policy objective; without it, nothing else is possible.”
Founded in 1885, Yonsei University is one of the top private Universities in South Korea. The university boasts of 158 research centres.
The South Korean varsity has multiple campuses, with the Sinchon campus in Seoul as its main location. Other locations include the International Campus in Songdo, which opened in 2010, and the Wonju Campus.
During his visit to the university’s campus in Seoul, President Kagame held discussions with Professor Dong-Sup Yoon and faculty members about furthering the partnership and increasing the number of Rwandan students.
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During the Korea-Africa summit that attracted 48 African leaders, President Paul Kagame called for more partnerships between Africa and South Korea, emphasizing that the two regions stand to benefit from each other’s immense resources and potential.
President Kagame said “the moment was long overdue”, praising Korea as a strategic partner for Africa.
“Korea is a global pivotal state and Africa is a pivotal continent. It’s only natural for us to draw closer together in the years ahead for many reasons. First, Korea knows the value of sovereignty and independence as well as the struggle required to achieve accountable and inclusive politics. Those experiences allow us to look at each other eye to eye with mutual respect and admiration,” President Kagame said in his address on Tuesday.
President Kagame noted that Africa has much to learn from Korea’s rapid economic transformation over the past few decades, emphasizing the need to invest in political stability, health, education, and technology.
“Korea’s experience shows that a country can be radically transformed in the course of a generation. Is there any explanation why Africa has not become a high-income continent? Africa can go much faster and there is no better way than focusing on stability, health, education and technology. All of these are possible depending on how we address our security and governance challenges. Africa’s young people need these opportunities. It’s possible,” the Head of State said.
Africa, President Kagame explained, stands to benefit from cutting-edge innovations from Korea to boost advancements in various sectors, including Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Speaking during the inaugural Korea-Africa Summit in Seoul on Tuesday, June 4, President Kagame said “the moment was long overdue”, praising Korea as a strategic partner for Africa.
“Korea is a global pivotal state and Africa is a pivotal continent. It’s only natural for us to draw closer together in the years ahead for many reasons. First, Korea knows the value of sovereignty and independence as well as the struggle required to achieve accountable and inclusive politics. Those experiences allow us to look at each other eye to eye with mutual respect and admiration,” President Kagame said in his address.
President Kagame noted that Africa has much to learn from Korea’s rapid economic transformation over the past few decades, emphasizing the need to invest in political stability, health, education, and technology.
“Korea’s experience shows that a country can be radically transformed in the course of a generation. Is there any explanation why Africa has not become a high-income continent? Africa can go much faster and there is no better way than focusing on stability, health, education and technology. All of these are possible depending on how we address our security and governance challenges. Africa’s young people need these opportunities. It’s possible,” the Head of State said.
Africa, President Kagame explained, stands to benefit from cutting-edge innovations from Korea to boost advancements in various sectors, including Artificial Intelligence (AI).
“Partnerships with Korea have focused on the cutting edge of innovation, helping bring the latest technologies to Rwanda and Africa more quickly. This summit serves to remind us that even more can be done. From artificial intelligence and robotics to small model nuclear reactors to driving the energy transition with critical raw materials, Africa and Korea should be working side by side.”
He insisted that Africa, on the other hand, has much to offer in its partnerships with Korea, especially in ongoing efforts to create a single continental market for goods and services in Africa through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
“Notably, by taking advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) connecting with Africa, particularly with our very capable young people will pay dividends for decades to come. Africa will be a central driver of global trade before too long so long as we don’t take our future for granted. We have to keep on the path of partnerships such as these one between Africa and Korea. In doing so we may also enhance our cooperation on other matters of mature concern in the global arena.”
During the summit attended by 48 African leaders, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol pledged to expand development aid to Africa and pursue deeper cooperation with the region on critical minerals and technology.
Yoon said South Korea plans to expand its cumulative development aid contributions to Africa to around $10 billion by 2030 and separately provide $14 billion in export financing to encourage South Korean investment in the region.
