This was announced by Prime Minister, Dr. Eduard Ngirente on Tuesday while presenting the status of agriculture sector to members of both chambers of parliament.
Ngirente said that agriculture growth stood at 7% in 2017 up from 4% in 2016. In livestock and livestock products, productivity increased by 11%.
He said that agriculture and livestock contributed 31% to Rwanda’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2017 from 28% in 2010.
Among different measures to increase the sector’s productivity, Ngirente said that Rwanda targets to increase irrigated land to 102,284 hectares.
“On measures to increase contribution of agriculture and animal resources sector to the economy of the country, the government targets to increase irrigated surface to 102,284 hectares by 2024 from 48,598 hectares in 2017,” he said.
However, members of parliament raised a concern on water shortage in different parts of the country asking whether it would not hamper the implementation of the programme.
The Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI), Dr. Geraldine Mukeshimana responded to MPs’ concerns saying that they are putting in efforts in using water from rivers and lakes through pumping techniques.
“There are no more projects to increase water for irrigation than using water harvesting systems, and rivers and lakes which we hope will make good impact,” she explained.
By referencing to World Bank report of 2016, Minister Ngirente said the contribution of agriculture sector to Rwanda’s GDP continues to be vital.
A multiple Emmy-winning investigative reporter and producer, Peter Greenberg is one of America’s most recognized, honored and respected travel experts.
President Kagame became the ultimate guide, showcasing the visual gems that his country has to offer. Together, they went gorilla trekking through Volcanoes National Park, jet-skied in Lake Kivu, explored Nyungwe Forest National Park on an elevated canopy walkway and saw a variety of wildlife during on a safari through Akagera National Park.
This 1-hour documentary is the latest edition of the Royal Tour series, in which Peter journeys to a select country to offer audiences access to extraordinary locations, historic landmarks and cultural experiences, and gets guided by some of the most dynamic and powerful heads of state around the world.
The documentary will be officially launched on 26th April 2018, on PBS, a broadcasting Service from Arlington, in USA.
In a short trailer released on his blog, Peter Greenberg presents to the world, Rwanda’s colorful nature and its beautiful landscape which is endowed with a culture of great diversity.
Mr Peter Greenberg said that the documentary will display the prosperous spots of a country of a bustling city, once home to a cruel and hunting past but now peaceful and one of the most prosperous bright spots in Africa.
{{Other documentaries that features on the Royal Tour series
}}
The refugees who recently crossed the border to Rwanda from the Democratic Republic of Congo had refused to abide by laws and obligations regulating refugees in Rwanda, citing religious beliefs.
Accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs (MIDIMAR) and the High Commissioner for Refugees (HCR), all refugees arrived at Nemba border at 8:00am and were registered before crossing to Burundi.
On Saturday, according to MIDIMAR, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and East African Community had written to Burundian government telling them that the refugees will be repatriated back.
At the border no Burundian official was present to receive them, only border officials and Police Officer deployed there were available.
MIDIMAR Permanent Secretary, Olivier Kayumba said that all refugees from Gashora were sent home and they remain with those hosted in Nyanza based transit center and Nyarushishi in Rusizi District.
On Thursday, Police had arrested 33 refugees who were inciting others to reject the assistance. Among them 31 were from Gashora transit centre.
Kayumba said that those who had been arrested were also released and repatriated.
According to Kayumba, after refusing to abide by laws, refugees chose to return in their country.
Early this month, over 2500 Burundian refugees entered in the country from the Democratic Republic of Congo. They refused all food assistance processed from industries.
Also the refugees declined physical identification, treatment and vaccination.
On Saturday, MIDIMAR, the United Nations refugee Agency (UNCHR), The Ministry of Health (MoH), The World Health Organization (WHO) and World Food Program (WFP) jointly warned the refugees to abide by laws regulating refugees if they want to be granted refugee status in Rwanda.
Sekamana won the football top position with 45 votes of the total voters against his competitor, Louis Rurangirwa who got only seven votes.
The 60-year old retired army senior officer will serve a four-year mandate. In December last year, same elections took place but there was no victor. The 2017 contest was between Vincent De Gaulle Nzamwita and Félicité Rwemalika.
During the campaign, Sekamana said that after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, only football did not develop, a reason that he decided to bring his contribution towards revamping the sector.
The outgoing president, Nzamwita urged new committee to develop regulations that prohibit members from creating groups which he dubbed ‘Coalition for changes groups’. He said that such groups don’t contribute to solving problems. He urged that they should address problems in the general assembly.
It is not the first time, the federation is led by a senior army officer. It was led by Lt. Gen. Caezar Kayizari from 1995 to 2005; and Maj. Gen. Jean Bosco Kazura from2006 to 2011.
In this spirit, College APECOM Gakenke in Gatsibo District was founded on 6th April 1986 as the first private school in the eastern part of Rwanda which had even a handful of public schools which, worse enough, were largely admitting students from then government’s favoured northern part of the country.
Charles Bazatsinda, a founding member of APECOM, tells IGIHE that about 200 parents from different districts, then known as communes, in the area contributed Rwf50,000 each to develop infrastructure and APECOM opened doors starting the academic year 1986-1987.
“We started College APECOM in order to promote education in our area because our region was not considered for secondary education in public schools while we had no single private school in the region now spanning from Nyagatare to Kayonza districts,” says retired teacher Bazatsinda.
{{How APECOM sank}}
According to Aloys Gapira, Chairman of Board of Directors and parents’ representative at now defunct College APECOM, the school rose to fame in the 2000s when the school, then hosting at least 1,200 students, was among the country’s largest schools but enrolments started plummeting gradually from 2009 when the government introduced free-of-charge Nine-Year Basic Education (9YBE), reversing the privatisation of education.
The school was also mired by bad management, according to some founding members and government officials who inspected the school. APECOM’s enrolment, which kept leaning on upper secondary school, sank further in 2012 when the government introduced free 12-Year Basic Education, presenting a better option for parents who were struggling to pay school fees in private schools.
The school, which battled for long to withstand operational costs’ imbalance, announced in January 2018 that it was not admitting students for this academic year and indefinitely suspended operations, citing reasons of changing strategy and taking new direction.
Gapira has told IGIHE that the school was increasingly accumulating debts for staff, suppliers and different creditors while the small students’ number could not service the costs.
“We had 182 students in total last year. We had four students in senior one in 2017, they got frustrated for being few in class and three left at the end of first term. We also had other classes with two, four and five students each. It was so challenging to teach in those conditions. The largest numbers were the then leaving 75 students,” says the Board Chairman Gapira.
“We realised that our enrolment had drastically reduced and thought what we could do. Our school is not business-oriented; we do not even have means to invest much in it. We started APECOM to address schools’ shortage but today schools abound in the country and in our area. We have achieved our mission; education is well offered and more affordable in public schools.”
Gapira said they are considering selling a part of APECOM’s establishment which is currently hosting University of Technology and Arts of Byumba in order to pay debts including eight-month salary for 18 staff members.
He added that they have tasked a team to study the new direction of the school and that they consider reopening it probably next year to offer technical and vocational training and or primary education as a day-school.
{{Scores shut down every year}}
APECOM’s fate is shared by most of the private schools which keep wobbling before 12YBE forces. At least 10 private secondary schools in Rwanda are closing down every year, 30 closed down at the beginning of 2017 alone and more are likely to fall in the peril as student enrolment dramatically reduces.
Jean Marie Vianney Usengumuremyi, Chairman of Rwanda Private Schools Association, told IGIHE recently that only government can save the struggling schools by subsidising them but the government has always rejected the proposal.
Usengumuremyi said the association which once counted over 200 members, was remaining with slightly over 100 schools in 2017 but that 70% of them were also struggling to stay afloat.
{{REB advises}}
Dr. Irenée Ndayambaje, the Director General of Rwanda Education Board (REB) says that Government’s policy on education for all is paramount and unstoppable but advises private schools’ owners to go back to the drawing board.
“We recognise a vital role that private schools played and are playing in our education but Government has invested much to educate even those who could not afford to pay school fees. Investors should change their strategy, improve their education quality and introduce rare subjects in their regions but also needed on the labour market,” he says.
Dr. Ndayambaje added, “There are many other private schools faring well because their standards are high. I urge all of them to give quality education to win parents’ choice on where to educate their children. I also advise them to invest much in technical and vocational education. Though expensive, technical courses are timely and acquired through a long process because someone can decide to do take many courses at different timings.”
Ministry of Education’s statistics show there were 1,575 secondary schools in the country in 2016 including 460 government-owned with 173,109 students, 862 government-aided with 301,554 students while 253 private schools had 79,076 students with an average of 312 students per school.
Kaboneka who was speaking Friday while closing a three-day local leaders retreat that took place in Kigali requested council members to exercise their powers in taking decisions serving people’s interests.
He said that some councils work properly, but others fail to take decisions due to own interests like personal interests in district tenders among others.
“There is a problem where some interests collide with decisions that would have been taken and end up by delaying them. I hope that this will change,” he said.
He said that both council and executive members should serve people, listen and solve their problems.
He requested leaders to change their mindsets and encourage people to work towards self-reliance.
The retreat brought together over 1300 leaders including Sector Executive Secretaries, District and City of Kigali Council Members, District Executive Secretaries, Provincial Governors and Executive Secretaries.
In a letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of Senate, President Trump said that the government of Rwanda continues to impose barriers to United States Trade which affects the exports of apparel products.
“I am providing advance notification of my intent to suspend the application of duty free treatment to all African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA)-eligible goods in the apparel sector for the Republic of Rwanda 60 days after the date of this notification,” the letter reads.
“The Government of Rwanda continues to impose barriers to United States trade, specifically, barriers affecting certain United States exports of apparel products,” he said.
According to Trump, in spite of intense engagement by United States officials with the Government of Rwanda, the United States has been unable to resolve this matter.
“I have therefore determined that the Government of Rwanda is not making continual progress toward the elimination of barriers to United States trade and investment, as required by section 104 of the AGOA,” he said.
In the letter, Trump says that the suspension of duty-free treatment described above is a more appropriate response in these circumstances than the termination of the Government of Rwanda’s designation as a beneficiary Sub Saharan African country under AGOA, as it promotes the continuation of efforts between the United States and Rwanda to resolve outstanding issues.
“Although the Government of Rwanda has failed to meet critical benchmarks required to address these issues to date, it continues to express an interest in resolving United States concerns,” he noted.
He says that he will continue to assess whether the Government of Rwanda is making continual progress toward the elimination of barriers to United States trade and investment in accordance with the AGOA eligibility requirements, as well as whether this suspension of benefits is effective in promoting compliance with those requirements.
{{Rwanda Stands firm on banning second hand clothes}}
In February, the Minister of Trade and Industry, Vincent Munyeshyaka told IGIHE that since Rwanda entered in AGOA, they only exported handicrafts products which did not exceed USD one million for the country per year.
“Actually our business with USA under AGOA is 0.05%. It is a small business which we cannot rely on and develop our industries,” he said.
As a way to promote locally made products, particularly textile and shoes industries, Rwanda has hiked taxes on imported second-hand clothes and shoes in order to weaken them on local market, but promote locally made products under ‘Made in Rwanda’ Programme.
Munyeshyaka said that banning second-hand clothes is in line with the country’s programme to develop industrial sector.
Munyeshyaka said that currently made in Rwanda programme is creating between 20,000 and 21,000 of jobs per year.
He said that the industrial sector comes to the third place in contributing to the development of Rwanda’s economy with 16% after services covering 47% and agriculture 30%.
“Under the move to develop the economy of the country, we need to develop our industry sector. As you know no country has developed without investing in the development of industries,” he said.
In Kigali City, transport fare increased from Rwf20 per kilometer to Rwf22, a 5% increase and from Rwf19 to Rwf21, 7% for a passenger from one city to another.
According to RURA, the transport fare hike follows fuel prices increase, car insurance premiums and investments that have been put in place to improve transportation services in Rwanda.
The Head of Transport at RURA, Emmanuel Asaba Katabarwa said that the new prices will be implemented starting Monday 2nd April.
“Increasing fares of public transport is based on different changes in transportation sector since 2015, these include; fuel prices, speed governors, Cashless payment Tap&Go and car insurance premiums of public transport vehicles,” he said.
Transport fares were last revised November 1st 2015.
According to RURA spokesperson, Anthony Kulamba, the new changes consider the both people’s interests and investors.
“Hiking prices is not in the interests of investors only, but, it is in the interests of consumers for serving them properly,” he said.
The Executive Secretary of Rwanda Persons Transporters Association (ATPR), Eric Ruhumuriza welcomed the move saying that the price of their services had also gone high.
“We thank RURA for considering the level of investment in this sector. We have discussed it based on different new services that have been introduced and fuel prices that continue to increase,” he said.
According to RURA, they are also assessing prices for motorbike and taxi cabs and results from assessment will be made public in the not so distant future.
This marks a significant increase from Rwf6.8 billion in 2016.
The cooperative of security personnel; army, police and Rwanda Correctional Services Officers announced this in the general assembly on Thursday.
Zigama CSS Director General, Maj.Gen. Albert Murasira said that last year was good as they had targeted a profit of Rwf6.3 billion but they exceeded the target.
He attributed the increase to small expenditures as most of their activities are performed by cooperative members. He said that the profit came from providing many loans and good recovery process.
“We tried to use little money in expenditures like in operational process and their wage payments. We also provided many loans and invested in bonds which resulted in earning much profit than we expected,” he explained.
Last year, the cooperative provided loans amounting to Rwf145 billion.
In 2015, the cooperative cut the interest rate on loans from 15% to 13%, which Murasira said increased well-being of members and development of the cooperative.
Members who acquire loans of less than Rwf5 million pay at the interest rate of 13% while those acquiring more than that pay at the interest rate of 15%.
The Chairman of CSS Board of Directors, Dr. James Ndahiro said that the secret behind progressive performance improvementis based on ownership of all members and contribution towards their development.
In a controversial auction that left members of Rwigara family discontented, the court bailiff, Védaste Habimana sold the tobacco at Rwf512 million. The tobacco was bought by Murado Business LTD.
Of the Rwf6 billion the government wants to recover from the Rwigaras, about Rwf5.5 billion is still needed.
Speaking to IGIHE yesterday about the next to be done for government to recover the taxes, RRA Commissioner General, Richard Tusabe said that they will auction more Rwigara properties.
“If the money is not enough, we should seek where to get it. We shall get it from other properties,” he said.
At the tobacco auction yesterday, the Rwigara family was not contented with the value that was given to their properties. They said that the tobacco had a value of around Rwf1 billion.
The family rejected the offer and said that the auction was conducted illegally.
However, Tusabe emphasized that no law was violated in conducting the auction.
“Nothing we can do without following Rwandan laws; everything was done clearly, no procedure was ignored and no law was violated. Nothing that can prove that we violated laws,” he said.
Asked whether it was possible to suspend the auction as stated by laws when property owner is not satisfied with the value at the first day, Tusabe replied; “Let’s do our work, isn’t it?”
Yesterday Rwigara’s daughter, Anne Rwigara who is also the family’s businesses representative requested the court bailiff to stop the auction, but the court bailiff told her to go to court if they were not satisfied.
Auctioned yesterday are the stocks o tobacco that had been seized last year.
The auctioned stocks include different types of tobacco such as Premier Filter (5553 cartons); Filter Star (1033 cartons); Filter Star King (328 cartons); Premier Super Menthol (191cartons) and Filter Star Soft (90 cartons). Each carton contains 5000 pieces of tobacco making a total of over 35 million pieces.
