The tweet was followed by several retweets, and replies that also wished Kagame a merry Christmas and fruitful year 2019.
Some followers expressed their happiness to be following Kagame on Twitter which they consider as continuous academic learning gotten free of charge and mostly education for a sustainable lifestyle.
”We’re very blessed to following You Excellency @PaulKagame not only on Twitter but all your Addresses, Speeches, Debates, Presentations live talk show and close discussions. It’s a continuous academic learning we benefit free of charge and mostly an education for a sustainable lifestyle,” Gatabazi JMV (The Governor of the Northern Province) tweeted.
Not only Rwandan Twitter users replied to Kagame’s tweet but foreigners were as well attracted.
One Twitter user with the names, Patrick Kelvin tweeted “Papa President Paul Kagame, merry Xmas to you and the lovely people of Rwanda together with your family. We in Kenya are proud to be associated with Rwanda and Arsenal FC.”
Recently, President Paul Kagame said the year 2018 has been a good year in all aspects of lives of the nation and urged Rwandans to worker harder in order to achieve more.
This follows the BNR Board of Directors’ ordinary quarterly meeting held in Kigali on 20th December 2018.
Since 1997, BNR has been implementing its monetary framework under a monetary targeting framework which is used in countries with economies that have not yet reached levels where the population can get different ways to save and get banks credits.
Under this framework, BNR has managed to keep inflation low and stable averaging 6.1 percent for the period of 1997 to 2017 and 1.4 percent during the first eleven months of 2018.
Speaking to journalists, the Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda, John Rwangombwa said that BNR will change from the monetary targeting framework and adopt Price Based Monetary policy Framework starting from January next year
“When we realized the money in hands of the population is getting much that it can cause inflation, we drew it from them and when we see it is getting low, we add it to the market. When it is getting much, we sell bonds and get it and when it becomes low, we let the money flow to market,” Rwangombwa said.
Prof. Thomas Kigabo Rusuhuzwa, Chief Economist at National Bank of Rwanda, said that BNR has chosen to adopt the price based monetary framework because they found it is modern and it accords to Rwanda’s current national financial status.
“Rwanda’s financial status is improving so that residents can now access different platforms to save and get loans. Choosing the monetary policy framework depends on the benefits you get from that,” Prof. Kigabo said.
“The Central Bank adopts the price based monetary framework in order to set a direction on interest rates which helps residents take good decisions in saving and investing their money in interest generating activities based on accurate information,” Prof. Kigabo added.
Kigabo explained that nowadays, Rwandans invest their money in activities that they think they will get more interests from different from past times when some only saved their money in commercial banks.
He gave as an example where people now invest their money by buying treasury bonds among other investments.
Since the National Bank of Rwanda started issuing treasury bonds on the market, the participation of non-financial institutional investors in bonds has increased from 48.3 percent in December 2014 to 54.9 percent in July 2018. For retail investors in bonds, the participation has increased from 1.6 percent in December 2014 to 9.0 percent at the end of July this year.
{{How Rwanda benefits from adopting the price based monetary framework
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When the financial sector of a country is growing, the price based monetary framework becomes very important in the financial and economic system.
For instance, when the National Bank of Rwanda, BNR, reduces its Key Repo Rate, it shows that commercial banks can get more profits in giving loans to loan seekers than doing trade with the Central Bank. This makes commercial banks invest in the population as they get profits which increases investment activities.
The Key Repo Rate is the rate at which the central bank lends to commercial banks.
When there is a lot of money circulating among the population that it can cause inflation, the Central Bank increases the key Repo rate and then commercial banks put their money to the Central Banks as they gain more profits there than in the population.
The price based monetary framework also helps commercial banks give loans to each other which helps them manage well their funds.
The sales of the treasury bonds also change due to the initial interest rate the Central Bank sets.
Prof Kigabo said that the price based monetary framework will help the citizens make the right investment choices basing on the profits they think they would get in.
“This will help enhance the saving culture and increase investments in Rwanda, which will benefit Rwanda in terms of economic growth,” Prof. Kigabo noted.
Since December 2017, Rwanda National Bank’s key repo rate was reduced to 5.5 per cent up from 6 per cent.
Umubano Industries Ltd won the auction beating seven other bidders in an auction that took place in Kigali City Centre at the four-star hotel.
Ubumwe Grande Hotel was sold on auction in a bid to pay US$18 million loan that was owed to Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) it had failed to service.
The auction was presided over by Lawyer Joseph Ngabonziza with Umubano Industries Ltd represented by Hassan Gasana who issued a cheque of US$34,053,888.9.
Speaking to journalists after the auction, Hassan Gasana said Umubano Industries Ltd which he represented aims at offering quality hospitality services, promising better services to customers.
“We are happy the auction went well and transparent. This hotel will continue to work as usual. Not many changes will happen because we focus on Rwandan culture to offer good hospitality services to people. I urge the current staff and employees of the Hotel to keep working with utmost commitment because their jobs are secure,” Gasana said.
On rebranding the hotel, Gasana said this will be looked at later.
KCB Bank Rwanda had recently announced that the former owners of Ubumwe Grande Hotel owed it a loan worth US$18 million, about Rwf15 billion.
Formerly, Ubumwe Grande Hotel went by the name of Zinc Hotel valued at about $40 million and was co-owned by CG Corp Global (owners of Zinc Hotel brand), and the Mukwano Group, who owned a combined 80 per cent stake; and Rwandan Robert Bapfakurera, current Chairman of Private Sector Federation, who owned a 20 per cent stake.
The facility, which has 153 rooms, 134 guest rooms and 19 apartments opened in September 2016.
Speaking on the occasion, Peeush Pillai, Country Head of Unimoni Rwanda, said, “We believe in connecting with people outside business parameters through community initiatives. With Christmas around the corner, we wanted to do something special and are glad that our humble efforts were instrumental in creating awareness on the value of education among the children at the center. It was also a delight to watch the enthusiasm of kids participate in the activities and interact with our staff.”
Expressing his happiness, Damas Mutezintare Gisimba, Head of Gisimba Foundation said, “We thank Unimoni Rwanda for this kind gesture and celebrating Christmas with our children. It shows their commitment to the community and the true spirit of Christmas. Everyone could feel the joy in the air and we look forward to a long association with them.”
As part of its corporate social responsibility, Unimoni Rwanda will be supporting and contributing towards the education of ten GMC children for the next academic year.
Unimoni is a renowned global provider of Money Transfer, Foreign Currency Exchange, Payment and Credit solutions. It facilitates the seamless movement of money across geographies, currencies and channels to enable our customers to achieve their financial ambitions. We offer multiple customer touch-points including retail stores, digital and mobile solutions and self-service kiosks.
In Rwanda, Unimoni provides a range of in-store money transfer, payment and foreign exchange solutions for retail and corporate customers.
Rwandan Medard Ngabo known in musical circles by the stage name ‘Meddy’ will hold two concerts in Bujumbura, with the first one slated to take place at Boulevard De l’Uprona on December 27th to be followed by another at Le Costa Beach the following day.
Last week, a message went viral on Facebook was written by one Gatoto Egide Mathias who wrote that the day Meddy steps in Burundi ‘they will kill him’.
The message that was intended to youth members of CNDD FDD, the Political Party on power in Burundi, known as Imbonerakure, went far accusing Rwanda’s President [Paul] Kagame of causing poverty to Burundi adding that the artist would go to Burundi to add to poverty that is already a threat to the lives of Burundians.
The message posted in a public Facebook group, Humura Burundi loosely translates as ” Greetings to you Imbonerakure [youth members of CNDD FDD], Kagame keeps provoking us. Now let us show him how we have gone mad and catch his dog and kill him. He (Meddy) is coming to cause us more poverty, making it worse for us.”
In the days and chaos that followed the Burundi’s incumbent President Pierre Nkurunziza’s taking over the third term as President of the Republic of Burundi, members of the opposition opposed to it saying it did not in accordance with the then constitution, the Imbonerakure used ‘Kumesa’ as slang meaning ‘to kill’ all those who opposed the third presidential term of Nkurunziza.
The word ‘Kumesa’ which usually means ‘to wash clothes’ in both Kirundi and Kinyarwanda is what Gatoto Egide Mathias used in his Facebook post.
The post raised fears among lovers of Meddy’s music and other music lovers who wished to celebrate festive times in neighboring Burundi.
Meddy also feared for his life as it was stated by Paulin Bizimana, the CEO of Crystal Events that invited the singer to Burundi.
“Meddy was frightened because so many people called him,” said Bizimana in exclusive with IGIHE.
Bizimana said that they have spoken to Meddy and assured him of his security and that officials of Bujumbura City agreed to provide special policemen to protect his security while in Burundi.
“We had a meeting with security officials, leaders of the City of Bujumbura and they told us they will provide us with special policemen to protect him,” Bizimana said.
Unconfirmed reports suggested that the Pop star had already decided not to perform in Bujumbura’s two shows but Bizimana said that Meddy had agreed to go to Burundi.
“Let us wait because we will meet in Rwanda but he had promised me to come to Burundi. Let us wait and see what happens,” Bizimana added.
If Meddy goes to Burundi, he will arrive there on 27th December and return to Rwanda where he will perform in the 2019 East African Party on January 1, 2019.
Kidum Kibido, a Burundian renowned singer told journalists on Thursday that someone who said he would kill Meddy wants to prevent his concerts from happening but they will do nothing to his life.
DND Developers Ltd is a construction company in Rwanda, established in 2015 with the goal of promoting the country, through the transformation of the settlements.
This company has built many apartments and is relatively affordable compared to other buildings in Nyarutarama, in Gasabo District.
In an interview with IGIHE, Director General of DND Developers Ltd, Eng. Daniel Mehari, said 12 apartments having two and three bedrooms have been completed & 80% have been sold, and this is why next year, they will start building another phase.
“We are now at the end of a design works, construction works will begin in February 2019. Unlike the first & second phases, people will be able to pay for in 12 months installments,” he said.
The houses DND Developers want to build include three bedrooms townhouses and four bedrooms Villas, all are G+1 buildings, and will be sold from Rwf90 million.
“Nyarutarama is so expensive that you cannot get a family house for less than Rwf150 million. We are working to minimize the cost as much as possible, and our houses are unique and decent. We are doing our best to be the change in this neighborhood,” he said.
These facilities will be completed by February 2020 and interested buyers will be able to start paying at the start of the construction, and they will be the ones to fix the amount of money they will be able to pay monthly until it becomes theirs.
For more information or desire to purchase DND house, visit at Nyarutarama on KG314 st, call at +250789664020 or email at Daniel_mehari@yahoo.com or dndrwanda@gmail.com. You can also visit [www.dnddevelopers.com.->www.dnddevelopers.com]
MTN launched the promotion in August 2018 as it kicked off celebrations for the 20th anniversary of its operations in Rwanda, to thank its clients who continue using the services it provides.
For someone to be eligible for winning a prize, they simply had to stay on MTN network and to register by writing 20 in SMS and send to 2018, or by pressing * 140 * 6 # and dial.
In concluding the promotion, MTN Rwanda treated its customers to a free of charge concert graced by Bruce Melody, Charly and Nina, Yvan Buravan and Riderman.
MTN also surprised passengers at the Nyabugogo Station where its staff gave away gifts to those aboard and refunded transport fares to others.
MTN Rwanda’s communications officer, Alain Numa, said that in Izihirwe, they awarded more than 600,000 people, as a way of thanking them for working with MTN.
“This is a very happy day. The theme was to thank our customers and the prizes are also a way of thanking them for Izihirwe did not require money,” He said.
He urged MTN Rwanda’s clients to continue using its services because although the promotion has ended, its operations will continue.
Edouard Murutampunzi, who won a motorcycle in Izihirwe told IGIHE that he was very happy because at first, he thought it was rumored and that no one ever wins.
“I received and enjoyed it well because at first, I heard people say they had won and thought that something else happened, but I was happy to experience it,” he said.
He added that he is going to start using this vehicle for human transport and earn some money.
MTN Rwanda started in 1998 and today has more than 4,500,000 subscribers.
The President made the remarks Saturday as he opened RPF Inkotanyi Political Bureau meeting held at RPF headquarters in Rusororo, Gasabo District.
President Kagame informed the more than 2500 delegates that the first ring of security is founded on reaching out to the citizens and solving their problems.
He said that whenever leaders don’t approach citizens, it is a privilege for those who want to manipulate them.
“There are areas in the countryside where residents will tell you that they have not seen leaders nor know the local leaders. When someone else comes out and tells them that he is more considerate towards them than their leaders, they believe it. What would you do? If another person came and said, ‘The reason why you do not see a leader here is that he does not care about you, but I have come here because I care about you’,” he said.
President Kagame urged the leaders to stop speaking only about their achievements, but also work. He said that whatever they may pride themselves in, the yield is reflected in their achievements.
“Whether you are happy, proud, or talk about your achievements, the result of your deeds is awaiting to expose you and reveal whether you have been telling the truth or lying to others or to yourself. Whatever good things you may say, pride in, it’s not a problem. There is time for that, but something is waiting for you and will expose you,” Kagame said.
He urged the participants to focus on governance because whatever plans they may make when something is wrong in governance, are futile.
He emphasized that whenever they do not respond to the problems of the citizens, the security that the country wants to achieve becomes impossible.
“You are safe for your child is going to school, a patient can access medical services, you are protected in all kinds of life, you are sleeping safely and getting the next day to go to work without spending the night thinking about whether you will wake up alive or nobody will be waiting for you at the door early in the morning to rob you of your earnings or take away your life,” the president noted.
He said that taking good care of citizens is not just for political leaders, but also private individuals.
He explained that a businessperson who contributes to changing the welfare of citizens sells themselves because looking for a good source because citizens who live well are also good customers.
The meeting was attended by RPF delegates from across the country and discussed, among other topics, ‘development based on capable citizens.’
President Kagame made the remarks on Saturday, at Intare Conference Arena where he chaired the Political Bureau Meeting bringing together about 2500 party delegates.
RPF Political Bureau has attracted delegates including those from Diaspora and representatives of party structures right from the grassroots.
This meeting aims at discussing how the development of the country can be based on Rwandan citizens by building the capacity of Rwandans in various areas to enable them to contribute to national development.
“We have two neighbors who don’t wish us well and two with whom we have no problems. But we will find a way to remedy that situation. Our priority is good relations but it does not prevent us from being ready if things do not turn out as we hope,” said President Kagame and RPF Chairman.
He said that 2018 has done well in all sectors because the country had ‘good production of all kinds’.
He further stated that the RPF Inkotanyi played an important role in maintaining good relations between Rwanda and other countries, although it was not easy, especially due to the history of the country.
He said that currently, Rwanda has two neighbors who are not friendly enough but will continue to look for ways to normalize its relations with them.
“Some issues calmed down giving us time to work, but we are still far, there are still a lot of things to do. It seems like they are alternating. Those who are far away used to cause problems, while we lived at peace with our neighbors. Now we are friends with them (those from far) […] so, we are going to find a remedy for that too,” he said.
“Living with a neighbor who wants to set fire at your things is not good. We have two neighbors in the region who do not wish us good, but we live at peace with two other people,” he said.
“We will also find ways to appease those two neighbors who do not wish us well. That’s on one side, you find ways to appease people and live with them peacefully, but when you do so, you cannot also forget to build the capacity to say what if it does not work out ? ” he added.
President Kagame talked about people who, with the help of neighboring countries, have been trying to disrupt Rwanda’s security by changing their names and disguising themselves as Christians but with other intentions.
President Kagame said that what needs to be done is building capacity for the people themselves because ‘when they do not doubt about you, they maintain security, others may come later or not’.
The last RPF Political Bureau meeting was held in July this year when the final list of candidates that ran as members of parliament was approved for elections that took place in September 2018.
In the elections, FPR Inkotanyi and its affiliated parties came on the top, won 40 out of 53 seats.
Col. Simba was convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) for 25 years after finding him guilty of leading different Interahamwe raids which targeted and killed the Tutsis in former prefectures of Butare and Gikongoro, as well as crimes against humanity.
The International Criminal Tribunal of Rwanda convicted Simba of genocide and the crime against humanity of extermination, and it sentenced him to 25 years imprisonment.
In 2016, he wrote to the court asking for release because he had completed his 2/3 sentence and Judge Theodor Meron President of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) expressed his desire to release him.
He should serve his entire prison term
The statement by the Government of Rwanda on Friday, states that at a meeting between Valentine Rugwabiza, the Permanent Representative of Rwanda to the United Nations and Judge Meron, on 14 December 2018, Rwanda knew that the latter had the desire to release Simba.
This unilateral action by Judge Meron comes over the objections of the Government of Rwanda and despite the dire consequences of Simba’s release for the survivors of his crimes, his lack of remorse, and his failure to cooperate with authorities.
In the midst of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, Aloys Simba converted what should have been places of refuge into human slaughterhouses.
At Kaduha Parish, Simba put traditional weapons, guns, and grenades into the hands of mass murderers and ordered them to “get rid of this filth.”
Simba likewise handed out weapons to militias surrounding the Murambi Technical School and instructed them to massacre the thousands of Tutsi civilians seeking shelter there.
According to the statement, one might legitimately question whether the deliberate massacre of more than 1,000 innocent civilians is adequately punished by a term of 25 years imprisonment – in other words, whether imprisonment for three months or less for each helpless victim adequately reflects the severity of the crime.
But Judge Meron somehow believes that greater leniency is due and has decided to set Simba free eight years before the end of his sentence.
Under these dire circumstances, inasmuch as Judge Meron is ordering Simba’s release subject to conditions, such as a prohibition on genocide denial, the Mechanism should release him to Rwanda to help ensure compliance with these conditions and to help advance his demobilization and integration, as has been the case for countless individuals in Rwanda.
Under Judge Meron’s presidency, Rwanda and the world have watched as he reversed convictions, reduced sentences, and released criminals long before they served their duly imposed prison terms.
Rwanda also observes that his plan to release Simba is not the result of a statutory requirement or the facts.
Rather, Judge Meron alone has created an arbitrary and automatic rule, not required by statute and unburdened by individualized considerations and assessments, to release any prisoner after service of two-thirds of the sentence. That is not justice.
As a matter of international law, the Mechanism must take into account the gravity of the offense, the interests of the victim survivors, the prisoner’s demonstration of repentance and rehabilitation, and his cooperation with the prosecution.
Simba orchestrated the brutal massacre of his victims in order to advance the genocidal destruction of an entire group.
In its submission to the Mechanism, Rwanda provided a detailed opinion from an expert in the trauma of genocide victims, who personally interviewed some survivors and reviewed statements from others.
She described how Simba’s release would cause untold trauma for survivors of Kaduha Parish and the Murambi Technical School, where children saw their parents murdered, and parents saw their children murdered.
In the face of this devastation, Simba has shown no remorse and has not cooperated, in any way, with investigators and prosecutors.
“We urge the next President to take more seriously the law and the facts when reviewing applications for early release,” the statement further reads.
It says that with due consideration to appropriate and established legal and factual considerations, the Mechanism can review and act upon an application for release prior to completion of the sentence.
But, it says, such decisions must be viewed as the exception, reserved for special cases and backed by compelling justifications.
International law does not confer unfettered discretion to the Mechanism or its President.
He is not at liberty to undermine what was found and upheld by courts of law, following multi-year investigations and months-long prosecutions, where the sentence captured the fullness of the events and considered all relevant arguments.
In the end, the statement says that going forward, the United Nations, member states, and those who have agreed to these processes must understand that Judge Meron’s approach threatens to undermine the international criminal justice system.
