The duo was sentenced by Nyarugenge Primary Court on Friday 3rd December 2021.
CSP Kayumba and SP Ntakirutimana were found guilty of crimes including theft, unauthorized access to computer system data and impersonation while co-accused intelligence officer at the prison identified as Ephraim Mutamaniwa has been acquitted.
Another co-accused Olivier Amani Twizere was also acquitted even though he had pleaded guilty of charges against him.
During trial proceedings, the Prosecution said that CSP Kayumba approached Olivier Amani, an inmate at Nyarugenge Prison who has IT skills, to help him steal money belonging to Kassem Ayman Mohamed, a British national also incarcerated in Nyarugenge Prison.
Kassem would normally use his visa card to buy medication and food, and leave the card to the person in charge of social affairs at the prison after use.
The Prosecution explained that Kayumba ordered the officer to give him the visa card, and took it to Amani to help him withdraw money that was on it.
In January 2021, it was reported that Kassem Ayman Mohamed, a resident from the United Kingdom detained at the prison was robbed Rwf9, 144,300,000 equivalent to 7,679,911 pounds.
The money was stolen from his ATM card which he used to shop medication and foods twice a month.
Twizere admitted that he stole money from Kassem on order of CSP Kayumba.
Twizere explained that he was obliged to obey his boss lest he would be threatened and accepted after reporting himself several times to the office of CSP Kayumba to plot the theft.
As Twizere said, he was requested to check balance on inmates’ ATM cards where he established the amount of money possessed by Kassem.
CSP Kayumba who was also present in court immediately appealed against the ruling.
He had appeared in court for the first time along with co-accused, ten months ago.
The proactive act is meant to ensure that traffic rules and regulations are respected for the safety of everyone on the road.
The campaign started on different roads in City of Kigali where drivers, taxi-moto operators, passengers and pedestrians were explained on the meaning of road symbol signs, including traffic control lights and red-light cameras.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Gerald Mpayimana, the Commissioner for Traffic and Road Safety said that the red light cameras were introduced to counter violations of traffic lights and bad maneuvers, which cause traffic jam and road crashes.
“We need road users to beware of the meaning of traffic light colour, understand that their violations especially in intersection that have cameras will lead to penalties, and know the meaning of different road traffic symbols including cross-walks,” ACP Mpayimana said.
RNP spokesperson, Commissioner of Police (CP) John Bosco Kabera said that this is part of the continuous Police campaigns to remind road users of their individual responsibility when using the road to prevent accidents.
“This campaign was initiated to remind road users on the traffic regulations and how to use the road safely. Road users should know and respect traffic control lights, sign posts and road lines, which direct traffic flow,” CP Kabera said.
He added that in addition to the speed cameras set to penalize speeding motorists red light cameras were also installed to detect those, who enter intersections in wrong manner violating road lines or violate traffic lights.
Rwanda National Police installed CCTV, speed cameras and Red-Light Cameras (RLC). The RLC is an automated system that detects and captures images of automobiles entering an intersection after the traffic signal controlling the intersection has turned red.
Dr. Uwamariya made the revelation on Tuesday 2nd December 2021 as she officially opened the 13th Policy Dialogue Forum of the International Task Force on Teachers.
The centre is expected to provide training for primary, secondary school and universities’ management with a view to equip them with relevant skills to carry their tasks efficiently.
“Responding to the question of teachers requires Governments, International Organizations and civil society members to work in synergy and find adequate solutions for teachers together. In this line, the Ministry of Education, in collaboration with partners, is in the process of establishing an African Centre for School Leadership, with the aim of supporting Governments in Africa to build capacity in promoting effective school leadership, for improved quality of teaching, and learning outcomes,” said Dr. Uwamariya.
She explained that teachers also benefit from other training programs polishing their competencies especially in ICT.
Dr. Uwamariya also shared Rwanda’s solutions to address emerging challenges in the education sector where teachers were provided with laptops and equipped with relevant skills to continue assisting students through online classes during COVID-19 pandemic.
Some school leaders have revealed that teachers still need more training programs because they have not yet acquired enough skills.
“Many teachers have not yet acquired enough ICT skills but we are grateful that the Government of Rwanda and other partners have expended much effort in teachers’ training to carry out their jobs smoothly,” said Father Jean Paul Mushimiyimana, the head teacher of teacher Training College (TTC) Zaza.
{{Teachers’ gap}}
Figures from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) show that Sub-Saharan Africa alone requires 15 million more teachers to reach the educational goals by 2030 whereby stakeholders need greater investments and innovative approaches to face this issue.
Carlos Vargas-Tamez, Head of Teacher Development at UNESCO’s Task Force for Teachers attributed the gap to two major reasons including meager salary and the nature of teacher’s job.
Carlos Vargas explained that the percentage of national budget allocated to the education sector is still insufficient where it should be between 15 and 20% instead of the current 3 to 6% within all countries.
He revealed that the inadequate budget results into low salaries for teachers and discourages people interested to pursue courses in education.
Teachers play a critical role to advance quality education. However, they need to be provided with an environment that values willingness to take risks and help them improve livelihoods.
Considering their outstanding contribution to the society, the Government of Rwanda has put in place different initiatives to improve their wellbeing, facilitating them to access financial services and salary increment among other social protection programs.
To this end, Rwanda plans to facilitate interested teachers to pursue studies up to Master’s degree with fully paid and non-refundable scholarship.
Among others, the Government has committed to provide half of school fees for students enrolled in Teacher Training Colleges (TTC) after revising existing curriculum.
Students pursuing courses in education at the university will not be required to refund the scholarship as so long as they are serving in the education sector after graduation.
Other incentives for teachers include salary increment to motivate them, improve their wellbeing and subsequently paving the way for quality education.
Since 2019, teachers from secondary and primary schools started receiving 10% annual salary increment. An additional 10 percent was made in 2020.
The increment was also considered in the fiscal year 2021/2022 despite difficult times of COVID-19 the country is going through.
Dr. Uwamariya explained that these incentive programs are expected to attract public’s attention to this profession.
It also goes hand in hand with increasing the number of teachers and reduce students’ overcrowding.
In 2020 academic year, the Government of Rwanda recruited 28,000 teachers and placed more 30,000 in 2021.
Hakizisuka was arrested in Nyamwiza Village, Munini Cell, in Rwimbogo Sector with the meat after killing the hippopotamus in Akagera National Park.
The Eastern region Police spokesperson, Chief Inspector of Police (CIP) Hamduni Twizeyimana said that the suspect was apprehended red-handed on the way home with a sack of hippo meat.
“Hakizisuka was intercepted coming from Akagera National Park at about 7:30pm, following information provided by residents,” said CIP Twizeyimana.
He warned against killing protected animals in gazetted areas
Hakizisuka along with the exhibit were handed over to RIB at Rwimbogo station for further legal process.
Article 44 of Law N°48/2018 of 13/08/2018 on environment prohibits the following acts in order to protect biodiversity: burning forests, national parks and reserved areas, burning swamps, grazing land, bushes, grass with the aim of agriculture or organising grazing land, killing, injuring and capturing animals of endangered species, destroying or damaging habitats, larvae, pupae or the young animals of the endangered species, causing death or burning protected plants, harvesting or destroying them, transporting or selling the remains of a whole or part of an animal and plants of endangered species, and cutting trees in forests or protected areas or in national parks.
In the article 58, Any person who hunts, sells, injures or kills a protected animal species and products thereof, commits an offence.
Upon conviction, he/she is liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than five (5) years and not more than seven (7) years and a fine not less than five million Rwandan francs (Rwf 5,000,000) and not more than seven million Rwandan francs (Rwf7,000,000).
The group was paraded to the media on Wednesday, December 1, at Nyarugenge District Police offices in Rwezamenyo sector, Nyarugenge district.
Patrick Mugisha is one the drivers paraded who was arrested after he declined to be tested whether he had taken alcohol.
“I was in my car parked on the road side in Nyamirambo on Monday, when Police officers who were on duty approached me and tried to test if I had taken alcohol but I refused because it was observable by everyone that I was drunk as I had even a bottle of Konyagi liquor in my car,” said Mugisha.
Murwanashyaka was also arrested driving a truck with luggages from Rusumo to City of Kigali. He said that he was arrested after he involved in an accident.
“I had taken alcohol during the previous night which I was thinking it could not affect me driving during morning however in the wee hours when I started driving the truck, I hit a vehicle which was parked on the side of the road and immediately when Police officers arrived to examine the accident detected through a breathalyzer that my blood had alcohol content and I was brought here,” said Murwanashyaka.
Murwanashyaka along with Mugisha asked for forgiveness and advised their colleagues to avoid driving when they had taken alcohol otherwise to seek someone else to help them or suspend the journey to other occasion.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Rene Irere, The Spokesperson for Traffic and Road Safety Department reminded the public that rejecting to be tested whether you have taken alcohol does not clean your drunken status.
“A big number of drivers are being currently found under influence of alcohol, others refuse to be tested and those who deny to be tested do it because they know that they had taken quantities of alcohol beverages which they want to conceal despite that they possess driving licenses which they got after studying road safety regulations,” said SSP Irere.
SSP Irere warned motorists that deliberately violating road safety rules and regulations especially driving under influence of alcohol is exposing their lives and those of others in high traffic risks adding that operations are meant to ensure safer road usage and will be continuous across the country.”
The funding worth Rwf2 billion was secured through the partnership between Rwanda and Belgian Development Agency, Enabel.
Enabel works with the Government of Rwanda on different projects meant to promote poultry, pig farming and agro-processing.
Normally, commercial banks provide loans with interest rates between 16% and 17%. The interest rate on loan from Saving and Credit Cooperatives (SACCOs) can go up to 22% while the Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) offers loans at 12%.
The Rwf2 billion funding will be channeled through the Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) which will also work with commercial banks to lend it out to beneficiaries with poultry, pig farming projects as well as those producing animal feeds effective from January 2022.
Dr. Solange Uwituze, the Deputy Director General in charge of Animal Resources Research and Technology Transfer at Rwanda Agricultural and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB) has told IGIHE that beneficiaries will receive loans at 8% interest rate.
“If someone applies for Rwf50 million loan in a commercial bank, the latter will consider 8% interest rate to be paid by the farmer or animal feed producer while the Government will cater for the remaining 8%,” she said.
Dr. Uwituze explained that the interest rate subsidy will not go beyond Rwf100 million.
“The Government shall only pay the interest rate not exceeding Rwf100 million for a farmer or animal feed producers requesting loan under this financing scheme,” she revealed.
Beneficiaries will have to go through existing loan application processes. Those without collateral will continue seeking assistance from Business Development Fund (BDF).
The Government mulls increasing the Rwf2 billion allocated to the fund depending on available means.
Poultry and pig farming are among projects benefitting from the subsidized National Agriculture Insurance Scheme launched in 2019.
It is implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) in collaboration with partners including Radiant Insurance, Access to Finance Rwanda, Prime Insurance and Sonarwa.
Under the subsidized agriculture insurance scheme, a farmer provides 60% of insurance fees while the Government caters for 40% of farmers payments.
The cost of insurance equals 4.5% of the total value of the cow.
So far, a total of 208,749 chickens and 3,020 pigs have been insured.
While humanitarian assistance has effectively supported displaced populations in emergencies, a different approach is needed involving new actors, predominantly the private sector in contributing to sustainable solutions for refugees and displaced persons.
It is against this background that the Amahoro Coalition and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have convened the inaugural ‘36 Million Solutions: Africa Private Sector Forum on Forced Displacement’ taking place in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda from 30th November to 2nd December 2021.
The Amahoro Coalition is an African-led initiative convening multi-sector actors from across the region to accelerate private sector leadership in driving sustainable market-based interventions that advance economic inclusion for displaced populations.
Guided by the Global Compact on Refugees and the pledges made at the 2019 Global Refugee Forum, the event brings together Africa’s private sector firms to explore solutions that promote economic inclusion for Africa’s forcibly displaced persons and their host communities.
The Forum’s theme, 36 Million Solutions, references the number of people forced to flee across the region and the opportunities to invest in their potential.
Alongside private sector leaders, the Forum brings together refugees and displaced persons, government representatives, and humanitarian actors to actualize a multi-stakeholder Pan-African approach to the displacement crisis.
Clementine Nkweta-Salami, UNHCR Director of the Regional Bureau for the East, Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes said that the number of displaced persons and refugees has been on high rise for the past ten years.
The issue is mainly reported in Central African Republic, South Sudan, Burundi and Mozambique.
She said that African countries should not perceive refugees as a burden but rather an investment opportunity.
Salami thanked Rwanda and Djibouti for achieved milestone towards the cause and urged the private sector to work with Governments and other organizations to support refugees and displaced persons.
Also present, was Rwanda’s Prime Minister, Dr. Edouard Ngirente who officially opened the forum on behalf of President Paul Kagame on Wednesday 1st December 2021.
As he delivered remarks, Premier Ngirente highlighted that the number of refugees and displaced persons continues to increase particularly in Sub-Sahara African countries and shared needed actions to manage refugee crisis.
“Forced displacement has reached its highest level in Africa. Statistics indicate that in 2020, the number of displaced people in Sub-Saharan Africa reached an alarming record of 35.9 million people, representing 45% of the total number of refugees globally,” he said.
Reports from SOS Children’s Village, the world’s largest non-governmental organization focused on supporting children without parental care and families at risk, show that poverty is among six major reasons behind increasing number of African refugees.
Other causes include armed conflicts and climate change.
Premier Ngirente went on to explain that efficient use of available resources is of critical significance to solve the issue of economic refugees.
“As it is well documented, Africa has a significant economic potential which, if well exploited, the continent can at least minimize the number of economic refugees by giving different opportunities to our youth,” he said.
Dr. Ngirente urged the private sector to contribute to the creation of jobs to tackle unemployment among the youth.
“It is therefore our responsibility to work closely with the private sector to use properly these resources by creating enough jobs for our youth. This will economically and socially empower them to address the issue of their risky migration to other continents,” he noted.
Also top on the forum’s agenda, is to explore solutions that promote economic inclusion for Africa’s forcibly displaced persons and their host communities.
Dr. Ngirente stressed that facilitating refugees’ access to the job market, decreases their dependence on aid and help the host economy to tap into full potential of their skills and consumption.
{{Rwanda’s strides}}
Premier Ngirente also shared Rwanda’s efforts in supporting refugees and asylum seekers to lead dignified life.
“About 10% of refugees in Rwanda live in urban areas, while the remaining 90% are settled in 5 camps across the country. We all know that receiving refugees is one good thing but ensuring that they live in conditions of dignity is another,” he said.
Dr. Ngirente revealed that all refugees aged 16 years and above, like any other Rwandan, have been issued with ID card to enable them get access to various services.
Today, there are 55,000 refugee students enrolled in various education levels in Rwanda, from early childhood, to primary through secondary schools. In addition, more than 500 refugees are currently enrolled in different universities under several scholarship programs.
Regarding the access to healthcare, in collaboration with The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), all camp-based refugees receive healthcare services at no cost. Those settled in urban areas are enrolled in the National Community-Based Health Insurance Scheme known as Mutuelle de santé.
Through Government of Rwanda, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and their partners, various projects owned by refugees and host communities have been funded whereby cash grants are extended to refugees to support their livelihood activities including money to start small businesses and to improve their agricultural activities.
Premier Ngirente reiterated Rwanda’s commitment to continue playing its role by ensuring refugee protection, security and social economic inclusion.
Rwanda accommodates over 148,938 refugees from different countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo (51%) and Burundi (48%).
The incident took place on Wednesday 1st December 2021 around 10a.m.
Police Spokesperson in Eastern Province, CIP Hamdoun Twizeyimana has told IGIHE that the exact cause of the fire remains unknown.
“We have not yet established the cause of this incident. We rushed to extinguish the fire outbreak which destroyed different items inside the building including shoes repairing equipment, shoes, motorcycle and vehicle spare parts,” he said.
CIP Twizeyimana revealed that the value of destroyed items is estimated at Rwf3 million.
He also urged the general public to develop precautionary and safety measures to contain fire.
The webinar which was opened on Friday 26th November 2021 was attended by representatives of the public, private and non-governmental organizations.
Speaking at the event, the Permanent Secretary in MINICOM, Yves Bernard Ningabire highlighted that the Made in Rwanda program, launched in 2015, was initially a “campaign” aimed at showcasing Rwandan products, so as to reduce importation of goods that could be produced locally, hence reducing the country’s trade deficit.
Ningabire particularly cited a report by the National Institute of Statistics showing that in September 2021, the trade deficit stood at US$ 223 million compared to US$ 139 million in September last year, adding that the Made in Rwanda program can still play an important role in reducing this gap.
The various speakers at the webinar highlighted the considerable impact that the Made in Rwanda program has had on the economy so far, especially through the development of the industrial sector. Ms. Amina Rwakunda, Chief Economist at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning particularly pointed out that between 2010 and 2019, the industrial sector’s output increased from 4% per annum (2010 – 2016) to 10.7% per annum (2017 – 2019), which had a positive impact on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
However, despite this achievement, there are still opportunities in the Made in Rwanda industries for the private sector and for the economy in general. Particularly at a time when the country is facing the effects of the Covid-19 epidemic, the industrial sector has shown resilience compared to other sectors of the economy, with its output rising by 2% in 2020, while sectors such as construction, hospitality, mining, trade and others were in recession.
This industrial output has been achieved as a result of efforts put in implementation of the Made in Rwanda policy since 2017. In the short to medium term, the policy is expected to continue to play an important role in tackling the gap that continues to be created by Covid-19, while other sectors will be recovering.
The Made in Rwanda Policy focuses on enhancing the quality and durability of Rwandan products, with a particular attention on increasing investment in agro-processing, light manufacturing products and construction materials, which are also expected to increase decent jobs among Rwandans. The policy also aims at supporting the Made in Rwanda enterprises (especially small and medium-sized enterprises) through various projects aimed at accompanying these enterprises in their activities. Changing the mindset on the use of Rwandan products is another priority under the Policy, from the estimated positive perception of 60% as shown in various reports to 100% in the near future.
In his presentation, Louis Antoine Muhire, Coordinator of the Made in Rwanda Secretariat at MINICOM, highlighted that while implementation of the Made in Rwanda Policy remains on track with relatively satisfactory performance (in the range of 50% according to initial findings from a Made in Rwanda Policy mid-term evaluation exercise being undertaken), some key challenges still need close attention in order to achieve even better results. These include – among others – access to raw materials, high utility costs, labour shortages, infrastructure deficits, etc.
Egide Mutabazi, Analyst at the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) on his part shared with the audience the particular importance of sector strategies in ensuring success of initiatives such as Made in Rwanda. He briefly unpacked the fourth edition of the Strategic Plan for Agriculture Transformation (PSTA 4) currently being implemented, particularly insisting on the role of technology and innovation in driving the sector’s transformation.
On the other hand, the role of Made in Rwanda industries in creating and maintaining productive and decent jobs for Rwandans cannot be ignored if the country is to achieve the target of 1,500,000 jobs by 2024 from around 800.000 jobs to date, said Faustin Mwambari, Head of Employment Ecosystem at the Ministry of Labor (MIFOTRA).
One of his key recommendations is that public private dialogue platforms should be strengthened for regular interactions on opportunities and challenges that need attention in the Made in Rwanda priority industries, with a particular objective of increasing public and private investments in these important economic sectors.
These webinars will be held in five sessions by May 2022 where each of the pillars of the Made in Rwanda Policy will be discussed in detail. It is expected that participants would benefit from the useful information to be exchanged and would gain significant knowledge on various topics. The outcomes and suggestions from the webinars are also expected to contribute in accelerating the different interventions under the Made in Rwanda Policy by the different implementing institutions.
It is expected that in Summer of 2022, a National High-level Dialogue on Made in Rwanda would be organised to discuss about – among other activities – the outcomes from the five webinars, but also from other ongoing discussions on Made in Rwanda across the country. The conclusions from the National Dialogue would aim at sustaining the achievements registered so far as well as at closing the gaps that still exist, leading to even more successes of the Made in Rwanda program.
The training extended to 126 Military Police officers at their offices in Kanombe, Kicukiro District, was organized and conducted by the Rwanda National Police (RNP) Fire and Rescue Brigade (FRB).
It was part of the RNP initiative to equip different institutions in Rwanda with basic skills against fire emergencies.
Assistant Commissinoner of Police (ACP) Paul Gatambira, the Commanding officer for Fire and Rescue Brigade said that the Military Police was trained on fire components and its causes as well as firefighting techniques.
“Trainees were first explained on the causes and components of fire to have the knowledge and skills on rescue operations. They were also enlightened on techniques used to prevent fire from escalating,” said ACP Gatambira.
Other skills given to the officers include precautionary measures when using cooking gas to prevent one of the causes of fire caused by recklessness and lack of knowledge on how to use it safely.
They were also enlightened on types of fire extinguishers and how to use them to respond to fire.
ACP Gatambira explained that Police took this initiative to equip institutions with basic skills on fire emergencies to prevent or alleviate the possible losses.
