Researchers at Columbia University’s Zuckerman Institute found that microglia, immune cells that play an important role in protecting and developing the brain, take several years to mature in humans.
The findings suggest that the unusually slow development of these cells could be one of the factors behind the complexity and cognitive abilities of the human brain.
Microglia are the brain’s most abundant immune cells. Besides protecting the brain from harmful substances and helping remove damaged cells, they also play an important role in shaping developing brain circuits.
Researchers found that human microglia can take approximately four to eight years to mature. By comparison, microglia in mice reach maturity in about three weeks.
The study focused on SRGAP2, a gene with copies that emerged specifically in humans.
Earlier research had shown that these human-specific copies influence neurons by increasing the number of connections between them while slowing the process through which those connections mature.
In the latest study, scientists made an unexpected discovery. The human-specific copies of SRGAP2 were found to be nearly 10 times more abundant in microglia than in neurons.
Experiments involving mice and human cells showed that the gene significantly slows the development of human microglia.
Scientists believe this slow developmental process may allow microglia and neurons to develop in coordination, helping shape the sophisticated networks found in the human brain.
The researchers linked the finding to a process known as neoteny, in which human development occurs over a much longer period compared with many other mammals.
The extended development of the human brain is believed to contribute to the emergence of advanced cognitive abilities.
The researchers now want to understand more precisely how SRGAP2 controls the development of microglia and other brain cells.
They also hope the findings could provide new insight into conditions involving brain development and degeneration, since microglia have been linked to neurodevelopmental disorders and neurodegenerative diseases.
The study, published in the journal Neuron, provides new evidence that the distinctive development of the human brain may depend not only on neurons but also on the immune cells that help organize and maintain brain circuits.
Scientists have identified gene linked to the unique development of the human brain
BK Group said the transaction covers its entire shareholding in the insurance company and values each of the 3 million ordinary shares at Rwf 10,567, based on an independent valuation. The initial price was Rwf 1,000 per share.
The completion of the transaction is part of BK Group’s consolidation strategy, under which the Group is focusing on two core businesses: commercial banking through Bank of Kigali Plc and investment banking through BK Capital Ltd.
According to the notice, the strategy places emphasis on “product diversification, market expansion, cross-collaboration synergies and a strengthened capital markets offering.”
BK Group said the sale of BKGI reflects this shift as it concentrates its operations on banking and investment banking.
The Group has also completed the integration of BK Techouse Ltd (BKTH) into Bank of Kigali Plc.
Under the integration, BKTH’s assets, technology platforms and relevant contracts have been transferred to Bank of Kigali, while the technology functions previously performed by the company will continue under the bank’s Digital division.
BK Group said the change will not disrupt customer services and that BKTH has ceased to operate as a separate subsidiary.
Proceeds from the transaction enabled BKTH to settle all its liabilities, with any surplus remaining at the closure of the company to be transferred to BK Group.
The integration will have no effect on BK Group’s consolidated net asset value, according to the notice.
Both transactions received the required regulatory clearances, including non-objections from the National Bank of Rwanda.
BK Group said the two developments are aligned with its efforts to streamline the Group and strengthen its focus on its core banking and investment banking businesses.
The move follows RSSB’s acquisition last month of all the remaining shares in Inyange Industries and Ruliba Clays, two companies that were subsidiaries of Crystal Ventures Ltd (CVL).
Commenting on the acquisition, RSSB Chief Executive Officer Regis Rugemanshuro highlighted that the institutions remains committed to deploying capital responsibly and strategically by investing in opportunities that deliver long-term value for its members.
“Completing the acquisition is a significant milestone in our ambition to build a strong and competitive insurance group.
“By bringing these businesses under a unified ownership and management structure, we are creating a platform that can create greater value to customers, support innovation and contribute to the continued development of Rwanda’s insurance sector,” he said.
RSSB has completed the acquisition of BK General Insurance from BK Group for Rwf 31.7 billion, marking another major investment by the pension fund as it expands its presence across key sectors of Rwanda’s economy.
Jean Claude Rubyogo, Director of PABRA and Global Bean Program Leader at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, told the gathering that around 150 million people in Africa consume beans regularly, and that PABRA’s roots stretch back further than its formal 1996 founding, to three regional bean research networks that had already been operating for nearly a decade with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
“Why don’t we come together?” Rubyogo recalled asking at the time. “Today we have a strong network of national programmes working as one regional system.”
He said PABRA has released 624 improved bean varieties over the past 30 years, now reaching more than 46 million farmers across the continent, 58 percent of them women.
Juan Lucas Restrepo, Director General of the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, said the alliance’s strength lies in bringing together public sector, private sector and farming communities around shared goals.
“It is not about beans per se,” he said at the Kigali Convention Centre. “It is about the economic opportunities they create, allowing more women to participate in business, opening opportunities for youth, and connecting producers to expanded markets.”
Rwanda’s own bean story
Florence Uwamahoro, Director General of the Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB), said Rwanda has both benefited from and contributed to the wider African bean sector. She cited varieties such as RWR 2245, RWR 3194, RWR 2154 and RWR 1129, bred in Rwanda and shared through PABRA’s regional networks for adoption elsewhere. With bean consumption in Rwanda exceeding 100 grams per person per day, she said, “investment in beans means investing in healthy populations, food security and economic well-being.”
Rubyogo pointed to the same shift from Rwanda’s side of the story: climbing beans, which occupied only about 5 percent of Rwanda’s bean-growing area in 1985, now account for around 45 percent. Six or seven varieties bred in Rwanda are now grown as far afield as Tanzania, Uganda, Cameroon and Burundi, he said, while a recent study found farmers who adopted the new varieties cut the number of days they went without beans in their meals by about 20 days a month.
Rwandan entrepreneurs described how that research reaches the field. Emma Uwera, founder of I&JJ Harvest Seed Company, said PABRA and RAB’s Bean Programme shaped her career from her undergraduate studies onward and helped her grow from supplying seed in eastern Rwanda to marketing nationwide.
“Farmers believe what they see,” she said, describing demonstration plots where 100 to 200 farmers at a time watch new varieties grow from planting to maturity before deciding to buy the seed.
Rose Kabuye, a retired Rwandan lieutenant colonel, grain trader and off-taker who has worked in bean exports since 2020, said the market increasingly rewards varieties that cook quickly and generate higher returns for farmers and traders. She said poor-quality grain still undercuts the market, particularly in school feeding programmes, where nutrition is a key consideration, and called for continued investment in post-harvest handling.
School meals link farms to classrooms
A major theme of the day was the link between bean research and school nutrition. Jean Damascène Nsengiyumva, Director General of School Health and Wellness at Rwanda’s Ministry of Education, said the Scale Sustainable School Feeding Innovation Project is being implemented in 509 schools across Karongi, Nyamasheke and Rusizi districts, with the ambition of reaching more than 445,000 schoolchildren, supported by the SDC and implemented by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT with MINEDUC, MINAGRI, RAB and other partners.
“A nutritious school meal begins long before it reaches the plate,” Nsengiyumva said. “It begins with the soil, the seed, the farmer, the school garden, the knowledge of the teachers and the communities.”
Today, more than 1,000 school staff and 1,000 teachers, including agronomists and community health workers, have been trained under the project in high-iron bean and vegetable production, nutrition, fertilizer application and post-harvest management.
Dr. Olivier Kamana, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, said the model aligns with Rwanda’s Agricultural Transformation agenda and called for continued investment in biofortified crops, school garden programmes and climate-smart farming. Rubyogo added that governments in Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania have all prioritised school feeding, with new varieties bred to cut cooking time by around 30 percent, easing pressure on firewood and the time women spend preparing meals.
Markets, jobs and research gains
Eliud Birachi, Project Leader for Markets and Business Development at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, said PABRA’s commodity corridor approach now spans about ten corridors across Eastern, Southern, Central and West Africa, drawing in around 200 enterprises collaborating within the bean system.
Rubyogo added further detail on research outcomes: in Ethiopia, nationally developed varieties have almost tripled yields compared with older ones, while yellow bean varieties popular in East Africa have doubled yields in places. He said the time between a variety’s release and its widespread use by farmers has fallen from 10-15 years in the network’s early period to roughly three years today. Mobile threshers introduced through PABRA’s partnerships with local artisans have reached 152,000 smallholders since 2018 and created close to 6,500 jobs, while bean exports from Ethiopia have grown from about $8 million to more than $100 million a year.
Looking ahead, Rubyogo said climate resilience will remain central to PABRA’s work as rising temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns threaten production, and pointed to Africa’s rapid urbanization, with cities such as Lagos and Kinshasa expected to reach tens of millions of residents by 2050, as a reason to keep developing affordable, nutritious bean varieties.
The event, themed “PABRA beyond #30, and beyond Beans,” was organised by CGIAR through the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT on behalf of PABRA, a partnership of more than 934 partners across 31 countries. Discussions also touched on extending PABRA’s demand-led, corridor-based model to other crops, including groundnuts and sorghum, and on the launch of PABRA’s 10-year strategy for 2027-2037.
Jean Claude Rubyogo, Director of PABRA and Global Bean Program Leader at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, speaks during PABRA’s 30th anniversary event in Kigali.The event brought together government officials, researchers, farmers, development partners and other stakeholders to mark PABRA’s 30th anniversary in Kigali.Rubyogo pointed to the same shift from Rwanda’s side of the story: climbing beans, which occupied only about 5 percent of Rwanda’s bean-growing area in 1985, now account for around 45 percent.A major theme of the day was the link between bean research and school nutrition. The event featured rich panel discussions.Emma Uwera, founder of I&JJ Harvest Seed Company, said PABRA and RAB’s Bean Programme shaped her career from her undergraduate studies onward and helped her grow from supplying seed in eastern Rwanda to marketing nationwide.Rose Kabuye, a retired Rwandan lieutenant colonel, grain trader and off-taker who has worked in bean exports since 2020, said the market increasingly rewards varieties that cook quickly and generate higher returns for farmers and traders.
The experience topped the Wildlife Experience Index with a score of 90 out of 100, ahead of emperor penguin expeditions in Antarctica and saiga antelope expeditions in Kazakhstan.
The index ranked 30 of the world’s most remarkable wildlife experiences, focusing on encounters where travellers can see animals in their natural habitats.
Wildlife encounters of this kind have become a major attraction for travellers, with safaris and other experiences involving wild animals featuring prominently on many travel bucket lists.
While Africa’s Big Five; lions, elephants, leopards, rhinoceroses and buffaloes, often dominate wildlife tourism, the index highlights a much wider range of experiences, from tracking black rhinos in Namibia to searching for elusive snow leopards in the Himalayas.
Bailey Robinson evaluated each experience across six factors: rarity, remoteness, conservation importance, exclusivity, accessibility and encounter potential.
Rarity was assessed based on population numbers and how difficult it is to encounter a species in the wild. Remoteness considered how far an experience is from tourism infrastructure, while conservation importance was informed by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
The index also assessed exclusivity based on access restrictions and visitor limitations, accessibility based on how easy it is to reach the destination, and encounter potential based on known opportunities to observe the animals.
Each factor was scored out of 10 before being combined to produce an overall score out of 100.
Why mountain gorilla trekking came first
Mountain gorilla trekking in Rwanda or Uganda received the highest overall score, helped by a perfect 10 out of 10 for encounter potential.
According to Bailey Robinson, expert trackers play an important role in helping visitors find the gorillas they have travelled to see.
In Rwanda, gorilla trekking takes place in Volcanoes National Park, where visitors hike through the mountain forests in small groups to find habituated gorilla families.
Only 96 permits are issued each day in Rwanda, making the experience highly exclusive while also limiting the number of people who interact with the gorillas.
The visitor limits are intended to reduce disturbance to the gorillas while allowing people to experience them in their natural environment.
Gorilla tourism also contributes to conservation and supports communities living around the protected areas. Revenue generated through tourism helps support the protection of gorillas and their habitats, while surrounding communities benefit from tourism-related activities.
Other top wildlife experiences
Antarctica’s emperor penguin expeditions ranked second with 88.5 points, receiving 10 out of 10 for both remoteness and exclusivity.
Kazakhstan’s saiga antelope expeditions ranked third with 87 points, followed by snow leopard tracking in Ladakh or the Himalayas with 85.5 points.
Javan rhino tracking in Indonesia came fifth with 85 points, while black rhino tracking in Namibia or Kenya ranked sixth with 84.5 points.
Polar bear expeditions in Svalbard and Bornean orangutan encounters ranked seventh and eighth respectively, both scoring 84 points.
Eastern lowland gorilla expeditions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ranked ninth with 81.5 points, while African wild dog safaris in Botswana or Tanzania completed the top 10 with 81 points.
Eight of the top 10 experiences involved threatened species, while Asia and Africa accounted for most of the destinations featured in the ranking.
Sarah Parker, sales director at Bailey Robinson, said the relationship between rarity and remoteness was one of the key findings from the analysis.
“What particularly stood out to us was the relationship between rarity and remoteness,” she said.
“The world’s most extraordinary wildlife encounters tend to involve travelling further, going deeper into wilderness and experiencing something that very few travellers will ever have the opportunity to see.”
She added that responsible travel and support for conservation projects were central to the value of such experiences.
“For us, the real luxury is the opportunity to experience something rare and meaningful, while travelling responsibly and supporting the places and conservation projects that make these encounters possible.”
Rwanda’s mountain gorillas continue to draw wildlife enthusiasts from around the world to Volcanoes National Park.Mountain gorillas in Rwanda offer visitors a rare chance to observe one of the world’s most remarkable wildlife species in its natural habitat.
The Big Bang is the name scientists give to the rapid expansion from the Universe’s extremely hot and dense early state, which began about 13.8 billion years ago. As the Universe expanded, it cooled and eventually formed stars, galaxies and planets.
The Universe is about 13.8 billion years old. Scientists have generally believed that rocky planets needed to form later, after early generations of stars had produced and distributed enough heavy elements into space.
The new study examined the first stars, known as Population III stars. These stars were extremely massive and ended their lives in powerful supernova explosions.
When they exploded, they released heavy elements such as carbon, oxygen and iron into surrounding clouds of gas. These elements are important building blocks for rocky planets.
Researchers focused on pair-instability supernovae, exceptionally powerful explosions that can release more than 100 times the mass of the Sun in heavy elements.
Their simulations suggest that material from these explosions could have enriched nearby gas clouds. As the clouds collapsed under gravity, they may have formed rotating disks around young stars, similar to the disk that eventually produced the planets in our Solar System.
In one simulation, scientists found a planet-forming disk around a young star with about 70 percent of the Sun’s mass.
The disk contained enough solid material to potentially produce several Earth masses of planetary building blocks at a distance comparable to Earth’s position around the Sun.
The simulations also indicated that water may have been present in these early disks. Although the amount was lower than in the material that formed our Solar System, it was still substantial.
The researchers stressed that the findings do not prove that habitable planets existed so early. Instead, they show that the conditions required for rocky planet formation may have appeared surprisingly soon after the Universe began.
The discovery could reshape scientists’ understanding of how early planets formed and raises the possibility that potentially habitable worlds may have emerged much earlier in cosmic history.
Scientists say the ingredients needed to form rocky planets may have existed just 100 million years after the Big Bang.
The graduation ceremony was held on August 30, 2026, in Ankara, bringing together graduates from the two military academies.
The four Rwandans are Byiringiro Arnauld, Cyizere Prince, Mbanzabugabo Daniel and Mugabe Robert.
Following the completion of their military training, they were commissioned with the rank of Second Lieutenant by the President of the Republic of Türkiye, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The graduation ceremony was attended by Rwanda’s Ambassador to Türkiye, Lt Gen (Rtd) Charles Kayonga, and the Defence Attaché at the Rwandan Embassy, Colonel JP Rulisa.
The graduation is part of Rwanda’s efforts to strengthen the skills and capabilities of its military personnel through professional military education and training programmes in different countries.
Türkiye’s President Erdoğan has commissioned four Rwandans with the rank of Second Lieutenant The graduation ceremony was attended by Rwanda’s Ambassador to Türkiye, Lt Gen (Rtd) Charles Kayonga, and the Defence Attaché at the Rwandan Embassy, Colonel JP Rulisa.
The airline on Monday, August 31, announced the cancellation of flights WB452 and WB453 scheduled for the day, citing continued constraints affecting air traffic control services at the Kenyan airport.
“Due to ongoing operational constraints affecting air traffic control services at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO), flights WB452/WB453 on 31 August 2026 have been cancelled,” RwandAir said in an official statement.
Affected passengers will be rebooked on the next available flight, while the airline said it was monitoring the situation in coordination with relevant authorities.
“We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused,” it added.
ATC Industrial Action Behind Flight Delays
While airline advisories and official communications from the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) attribute the crisis to “operational constraints,” airport workers and union officials confirm the root cause is a strike and go-slow action organized by the Kenya Aviation Workers Union (KAWU) alongside staff from the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).
Union representatives cite unresolved Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs), stagnant wages, and broader administrative disputes regarding airport management as the driving forces behind the industrial action. Air traffic controllers and ground staff downing tools has severely throttled aircraft movement in and out of Kenya’s primary aviation hub.
The cancellations follow a similar disruption on Sunday, when RwandAir cancelled flights WB402 and WB403 scheduled for August 30 due to the air traffic control slowdown at JKIA.
Widespread impact across international carriers
The disruptions have affected several airlines operating through the Nairobi airport, leaving thousands of passengers facing extended delays, cancellations, and flight diversions.
The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) warned on August 30 that flight delays could affect some departing flights at airports across the country, while flag carrier Kenya Airways attributed its schedule disruptions directly to ATC limitations.
“The ongoing delays into and out of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) are due to operational constraints within Air Traffic Control (ATC) Services,” Kenya Airways said in an advisory.
Flight status information on FlightRadar24 showed several Kenya Airways services affected on Monday, including flights to Mumbai, Addis Ababa, Dubai, Juba, Kigali, Kinshasa, Johannesburg, Lusaka, and Lubumbashi.
Kenya Airways flight KQ205 to Mumbai was listed as cancelled, while KQ401 to Addis Ababa was also cancelled. Flights to Dubai, Juba, Kigali, and Kinshasa were listed as delayed, while KQ584 to Lubumbashi was diverted.
Other international carriers were also affected. Gulf Air flight GF707 to Bahrain was listed as cancelled, while Air Arabia flight G9734 to Sharjah was delayed.
Despite the disruptions, several other domestic and international flights remained scheduled, including services to Mombasa, Kisumu, Eldoret, Malindi, New York, Kilimanjaro, Entebbe, Sharjah, Zanzibar, Doha, and Addis Ababa.
Passengers travelling through JKIA have been strongly advised to confirm their flight status directly with their respective airlines before heading to the airport.
The disruptions have affected several airlines operating through the Nairobi airport, leaving thousands of passengers facing extended delays, cancellations, and flight diversions.
Cardinal Kambanda delivered the message on Sunday, August 30, 2026, during celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of Caritas and the Justice and Peace Commission in the Archdiocese of Kigali.
The jubilee was celebrated at St Jean Bosco Parish in Kicukiro, Kigali. The Justice and Peace Commission in the Archdiocese of Kigali was established in 1992, amid violence, insecurity and political unrest.
Following the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, its activities expanded to address challenges facing the country, including refugees, returnees, prisoners and orphans, as well as efforts to promote forgiveness and peaceful coexistence.
Cardinal Kambanda said justice and peace require love of God, which teaches people to care for others and make sacrifices rather than focus solely on their own interests.
He particularly urged Christians to learn from Blessed Floribert Bwana Chui, a Congolese customs official who was killed in 2007 after refusing a bribe to allow expired food products that could have harmed many people to pass through.
“Blessed Floribert Bwana Chui, in Goma, Congo, refused a bribe when they wanted to bring in expired food that could kill people. They offered him money, but he refused until they killed him. He accepted persecution and death rather than take a bribe that could put many people’s lives at risk,” Cardinal Kambanda said.
Bwana Chui, who worked at a border customs post, was abducted and killed in Goma on July 8, 2007, at the age of 26.
Cardinal Kambanda also cited other people who sacrificed their lives for others as examples worth following.
He revealed that the Catholic Church in Rwanda has begun collecting information and compiling a list of Rwandans who were killed during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi because of acts of self-sacrifice, although he did not specify how the information would be used.
Cardinal Kambanda has urged Christians to emulate integrity
The announcement was made by Minister of Health Dr Sabin Nsanzimana following the handover of the newly expanded Rwanda Masaka Hospital, constructed with support from China.
Dr Nsanzimana said CHUK will relocate in phases to avoid disrupting the services it currently provides, while measures are also being taken to address the gap that could arise after it leaves its current location in central Kigali.
He explained that no new hospital is planned for the current CHUK site. Instead, the government intends to strengthen nearby Muhima and Nyarugenge hospitals.
“Nyarugenge Hospital is planned for a second-phase expansion, and Muhima Hospital will also be expanded. We want to link them so that CHUK patients who cannot travel to Masaka have other places to go without congestion. That means expanding those other hospitals nearby.”
Dr Nsanzimana said the government is also expanding district hospitals that are being developed into fully-fledged teaching hospitals.
Hospitals nearing that status include Kibungo, Rwamagana, Kibagabaga and Nyamata, while expansion and upgrading works are also underway at Kibuye, Kibogora, Kiziguro and Nyagatare hospitals.
The minister said the programme is expected to accelerate from 2027, as more specialists become available to provide healthcare services and train medical students.
In a statement issued on Sunday, August 30, the ministry said investigations into suspected malpractice had established that mass cheating occurred in 254 examination rooms, affecting 7,188 learners.
Although examination malpractice would ordinarily result in the cancellation of the affected examinations, the ministry said it had decided to allow the learners to sit the examinations again after establishing that some of the cheating had been orchestrated and facilitated by adults responsible for administering the tests.
“In the interest of fairness and the future of the affected learners, the Ministry has therefore decided to allow them to retake the Primary Leaving Examinations,” the statement said.
The retake examinations will be held from September 2 to 4, with the National Examination and School Inspection Authority (NESA) expected to announce the examination timetable, designated centres and further guidance on August 31.
The Ministry of Education and NESA will work with learners, parents, schools and local authorities to ensure the process is managed with minimal disruption, according to the statement.
The development comes barely days after the national examination results were released, showing a significant improvement in performance at the primary school level.
Announcing the results on August 20, NESA Director General Dr Bahati Bernard said the national pass rate had risen to 88.21 percent in the 2025/26 academic year, compared with 75.6 percent in the previous year.
A total of 276,579 learners from 3,895 schools sat the examinations, with boys recording a pass rate of 89.59 percent, slightly higher than the 87.1 percent registered by girls.
The ministry said the integrity of national examinations remained non-negotiable and announced plans to strengthen the examination system following the malpractice.
It also warned that everyone found to have organised, facilitated, participated in or deliberately enabled the cheating would be held accountable.
A file photo of learners sitting for a past national examination. The Ministry of Education on Sunday, August 30, 2026, ordered more than 7,000 learners to retake the 2026 Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) after investigations confirmed widespread cheating in examination rooms across the country.
