On Sunday, the contingent paid respect to the victims of 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi at Kigali Genocide Memorial located in Gisozi.
Speaking during the visit, the Royal Netherlands Ambassador to Rwanda, Matthijs Wolters said that the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi has clearly shown the importance of value-based leadership in the armed forces for the protection of civilians, and regrettably the consequences of a lack thereof.
“Let these lessons not be forgotten,” he said.
Wolters thanked RDF for offering the opportunity for their contingent to train in Rwanda to build their skills and maintain their preparedness.
The RDF Spokesperson, Col Ronald Rwivanga commended the strong partnership between the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Republic of Rwanda in different areas including training in justice and humanitarian law and law of armed conflict as well as support in logistics for RDF peacekeepers among others.
He said that the Field Exercise reflects the depth of the relationship between the two Defence Forces.
Rwanda and the Kingdom of the Netherlands maintain strong military relationship dating back from a Memorandum of Understanding on bilateral military cooperation between the Ministry of Defence of Rwanda and the Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom of the Netherlands signed on 14th June 2005.
Beneficiaries of the training organized by Sustainable Growers Rwanda are from Nyampinga Cooperative comprised of 1163 members involved in coffee growing and processing based in Jari village, Bunge cell.
The cooperative is composed of different groups each with 15 members. The training started with farmer promoters who will also share acquired skills with all colleagues.
Farmer promoters are model farmers whose agricultural yields are comparatively higher owing to improved agricultural practices.
Such farmers facilitate the extension of best practices and skills to other farmers to improve yields.
Sustainable Growers is an organization committed to increase economic opportunities for women and their families through coffee farming.
Fabien Twahirwa, a coffee agronomist working with Sustainable Growers has told IGIHE that they have been helping women and families to grow their income with the latest training being part of other kinds of support extended to farmers.
“The training will help them address the shortage of organic fertilizers to increase agricultural yields,” he said.
“We are currently working with Nyampinga Cooperative which has 1163 members. These are women from different families who will share acquired skills with other members of the community to increase yields,“ added Twahirwa.
Ruben Borge, a Spanish trainer said that the coffee farmers were equipped with relevant skills to make compost and liquid fertilizer.
The compost manure is comprised of a mix of dry and fresh decomposable grasses, mixed with soil, coffee residues, charcoal, ash, and other catalysts including water, sugar or sugar cane leftovers.
The foliar spray fertilizer is composed of cow dung, water, milk, sugar blended with catalysts, ash, ground black stones and microbes.
“The compost makes the land more productive and helps to increase yields while the foliar plant spray ensures smooth growth of leaves. It also serves as a pesticide to destroy insects,” he said.
He told trainees that the two types also contribute a lot to coffee’s quality and great taste.
Trainees explained that acquired skills will help them turn their land more productive and increase yields.
“I am a farmer promoter among coffee growers but the produce is still low. I will train fellow farmers so that everyone will be able to make own compost to increase yields for coffee and other crops,” said Odette Mukakayiro.
“Farmers in my group harvest between two and three kilograms of coffee per tree. We are optimistic that the compost will help us to increase the produce to six or seven kilograms,” she added.
Epihanie Dusabe, another training beneficiary also emphasized that acquired skills will undoubtedly help farmers to improve yields.
Esther Mukangango, the president of Nyampinga Cooperative urged trainees to put acquired skills to good use.
“We need to remain consistent and put into practice what we have learnt to multiply coffee produce, improve its quality and become excellent growers,” she said.
The training held from 14th to 25th November 2021 was also extended to farmers in other districts covered by Sustainable Growers interventions.
At least 63 farmer promoters from cooperatives working with Sustainable Growers received the training.
They are expected to train more 5000 farmers working with the organization.
Other trainees include farmers from other agriculture related projects including Agriterra , Impexcol and Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB).
Sustainable Growers works with six cooperatives of coffee farmers in six districts.
These include Nyampinga in Nyaruguru, Gashonga in Rusizi, KOAKAA in Nyamasheke, Twongere Umusaruro wa Kawa in Kayonza, Mayogi in Gicumbi and Abahingakawa in Gakenke district.
The training was organized by Sustainable Growers Rwanda in partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies and Centre for the promotion of Imports from Developing countries (CBI) from the Netherlands.
The Equity Leaders Program which is one of the programs under EGF’s Education and Leadership Development Pillar has launched in Rwanda by selecting 32 top-performing male and female students across different Districts where Equity Bank Rwanda has a branch presence.
The scholars who were selected based on the Senior Six National leaving examination results obtained from the National Examination and Schools Inspection Authority (NESA) will form the first cohort of ELP beneficiaries in Rwanda bringing the total number of beneficiaries within East Africa to 17,072 since the inception of the program. This includes graduates from Equity’s bespoke secondary school scholarship program, Wings to Fly.
The 32 scholars have just concluded a one-week induction process and will now proceed to join Equity Bank for a 3 months paid-internship program where each scholar will get a monthly stipend and will experience on-the-job training and mentorship within various departments. Outside the 3-month paid internship period, the mentorship and coaching engagement with the scholars will be maintained for the period they are in university.
Speaking during the official ELP launch in Rwanda, Equity Group Holdings MD and CEO, and Executive Chairman of the Equity Group Foundation Dr. James Mwangi stated: “Over the last three decades, Equity Group has recognized the importance of investing in human capital. In Kenya and through our Equity Leaders Program (ELP), the Group has identified close to 7,000 of the most gifted boys and girls who have graduated secondary school and nurtured them through paid internship work experience, coaching and mentorship while supporting their transition to the best local and global universities as we prepare them to enter the world of work. Testament to the success of the ELP is our current Managing Director of Equity Bank Uganda is a beneficiary of the program.”
Over 700 of ELP scholars have gone ahead to complete their global education in leading universities like Yale, Harvard, MIT, Science Po, Columbia among others.
Most have proceeded to securing employment and senior positions in top companies such as a Vice President at Bain Capital, Director of Government Affairs at Astra Zeneca, Senior Consultant at Boston Consulting Group, Software Engineer at Bloomberg just to name a few. They continue to occupy senior leadership positions upon their return to the continent.
The Equity Leaders Program has been uniquely designed offering the 32 scholars an opportunity to apply for admission and full financial aid at global universities through admission into the College Counselling Program, a program that runs for 3 months and is aimed at exposing them to the global universities’ admissions process.
Speaking during the launch, Equity Bank Rwanda Managing Director Hannington Namara explained that Equity Bank is excited to continue impacting lives and livelihoods in Rwanda by implementing efficient and productive programs that can sustainably create change.
“We intend to leverage on our banking infrastructure to connect the youth, farmers, MSMEs, women and communities to educational, health and economic opportunities, tools and technologies that will promote personal progress and wealth creation,” he said.
In addition to the skills training, ELP aims to empower young academically gifted scholars through mentorship and leadership development and is also keen on spurring personal and professional development, creativity, innovation, and community engagement amongst the scholars thus moulding them into forward-thinking young professionals with an ethical focus on giving back to their communities.
Dr. Mwangi further stated that the youth hold great potential and are the future of African continent noting that Equity Leaders Program is scaling its reach across the region to give opportunities to Rwandan youth to explore their potential and obtain job training even before university.
“By working with Equity, they will also enjoy access to a regional network of international professionals while also having a chance to network and form strong relationships critical in promoting innovation and entrepreneurship thus contributing to both the social and economic development of Africa,” he noted.
Speaking as part of the launch program, State Minister for Primary and Secondary Education, the Honorable Gaspard Twagirayezu said: “We are delighted to partner with Equity Bank to create world class transformational leaders of tomorrow who will inspire change through taking responsibility to shape the future .The top performing scholars were selected based on the Senior Six exams results and have received training during the boot camp which will expose them to be great leaders in different spheres of life and be able to study in various universities both local and global.”
The 32 scholars who have completed a rigorous training exercise and induction program will commence their paid internship this coming Monday.
{{About Equity Bank Rwanda}}
Equity Bank Rwanda began its operations in 2011 and is registered as a commercial bank by the National Bank of Rwanda. The Bank has its Head Office located in Kigali, with a footprint of 15 branches and is supported by 3,173 agents, 1,861 merchants and a network of 22 ATMs.
Equity Bank Rwanda is a subsidiary of Equity Group Holdings Plc, a financial services company listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange, Uganda Securities Exchange, and Rwanda Stock Exchange. In addition to Equity Bank Uganda, the Group has banking subsidiaries in, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, DRC, South Sudan, and a Commercial Representative Office in Ethiopia; with additional non-banking subsidiaries engaged in the provision of investment banking, custodial, insurance agency, philanthropy, consulting, and infrastructure services.
Equity Group is the largest bank in the region with assets of USD 11.2 billion. It is also the largest bank in terms of deposits, with a market capitalisation of USD 2 billion and a customer base of over 15 million. The Group has 337 branches, 56,772 agents, 32,269 merchants, 697 ATMs and has widely adopted digital banking channels.
The Banker’s Top 1,000 World Banks 2020 ranked Equity Bank 754th in its global ranking, 62nd in terms of Capital Assets to Assets ratio, 55th in terms of Profits on Capital and 20th in terms of Return on Assets. The Banker’s Top 100 African Banks 2020 ranked the Bank 7th among the top 10 banks in Africa, 5th for strength, 9th for growth performance, 8th for return on risk and 6th for profitability and leverage category. In the same year, Moody’s gave the Bank an overall rating of B2 with a negative outlook, identical to the Kenyan government’s sovereign rating, due to the Bank’s strong brand recognition, strong liquidity buffers and resilient funding profile, well-established national franchise, and strong adoption of digital and alternative distribution channels.
{{About the Equity Leaders Program}}
The Equity Leaders Program was founded in 1998 and has scaled up over time to benefit 17,072 scholars in both Kenya and Rwanda. The paid internship component of the Equity Leaders Program admits the top performing boy and girl in the secondary level final exams from each District in Uganda where Equity Bank has a branch. The program aims at empowering young academically gifted scholars by supporting their access to education in public universities in Kenya and around the globe, as well as equipping them with leadership skills.
The paid internship runs for the 3-6 months between secondary school completion and the beginning of university. In Kenya, 6,713 scholars have benefitted from internships at Equity Bank prior to joining local or global universities. Of these, 688 scholars have secured admissions and scholarships in top global universities.
The leadership development model seeks to develop scholars in four program areas:
1. Personal and Professional Development to enable scholars to identify their unique talents and strengths and to match their individual interests with meaningful career opportunities.
2. Global exposure to encourage scholars to expand their horizons and become world class-leaders who can compete and succeed in a global marketplace.
3. Creativity and Innovation to empower scholars to think creatively about providing solutions to the challenges and opportunities facing communities around the world.
4. Community Engagement to inspire scholars to use their abilities for good and to make a positive impact on society.
While developing individual scholars in these thematic areas, the program also endeavours to create a strong network of scholars working together across disciplines and sectors to transform their communities, their country, and the world at large. This leadership development model is delivered through the following initiatives:
•The Internship Program which allows scholars at local universities to return for internships with Equity Group and its partners during university holidays to get professional experience while saving for their university education. The program runs for the 3-6 months between secondary school completion and the beginning of university.
•The Global Summer Internship Program which allows scholars studying at international universities to return to Africa for their summer holidays and intern with Equity Group and its partners, giving them work experience and building their professional networks on the continent.
•The College Counselling Program which supports Equity scholars to access admission and scholarships to some of the world’s leading universities, including the Ivy League universities in the US.
•The Annual Leadership Congress which allows scholars to connect with each other to form a strong community, learn about leadership and employability skills, and interact with successful leaders from various industries
•The Innovators Program which trains and develops scholars in innovation and entrepreneurship skills, allowing them to write business plans and pitch their ideas for seed funding.
•The Centers of Excellence Program where scholars provide residential mentorship to various secondary schools
•The University Chapters at campuses in Kenya and abroad that serve as platforms for interaction, networking, and activities for the scholars during their university session.
•The Wings to Fly Mentorship Program which enables scholars to visit Wings to Fly high school scholarship recipients at their respective high schools to provide mentorship and academic coaching.
The flagship programme of the partnership between Paris Saint-Germain and Visit Rwanda, the PSG Academy in Huye is completely free and has the mission of training future talents and encouraging Rwandan youngsters to play football.
This season, 172 children – boys and girls aged between 6 and 16, who were selected during scouting sessions attended by 2,000 children – are taking part in the academy’s project. For one season, these youngsters will have the opportunity to train in a Rwandan first-division stadium. The training sessions will be led by local staff trained by the club and are designed by the club’s Technical Director according to each child’s skill level and in keeping with the Paris Saint-Germain style of play.
Every year, around 500 additional children will be invited to take part in courses or one-off events organised on the site, in order to give them a taste of the Paris Saint-Germain experience.
During the inauguration, the children present were able to meet iconic footballer Rai and join him for a training session. The social media entertainer Boris Becker also got into the spirit of the day and enjoyed a kick-about with the young footballers.
“We welcome the contribution of the PSG academy in Rwanda to the country’s football development through professionalizing Rwandan players from a young age. The introduction of specialized training to Rwandan football technicians and coaches is an added advantage to Rwanda’s football development. The academy in Huye district will also improve the socio-economic situation of the local population. The Government of Rwanda is committed to continuing the development of this program so that it can reach its intended objective,” said Shema Maboko Didier, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Sports.
Nadia Benmokhtar, Head of Brand Development at Paris Saint-Germain also expressed delight for the opening of a new academy in Rwanda.
“This project, fruit of a long-term collaboration with our partner Visit Rwanda, is very important to us. It marks a new stage in the development of football in Rwanda and will make it easier for many young Rwandan players to access top-level apprenticeships. This academy also boosts the club’s presence in Africa,” she noted.
“The creation of this academy is very emotional for me as it echoes my own experience. At age 14, a professional football club gave me a chance after seeing me play in the street. At the time, there were no organisations like this! This academy gives many young people a fantastic opportunity to fulfil their potential. I am delighted to have met them and wish them great success for the future,” added Raí, former Paris Saint-Germain player, present at official opening.
{{About RDB}}
The Rwanda Development Board (RDB) is a government agency in Rwanda with a vision to transform Rwanda into a dynamic global hub for business, investment, and innovation. Its mission is to fast-track economic development in Rwanda by enabling private sector growth. Learn more about the Rwanda Development Board www.rdb.rw
{{About Paris Saint-Germain}}
Paris Saint-Germain football club was created in 1970 and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2020. Ever since QSI purchased the club in 2011, Paris Saint-Germain has undergone a transformation to become one of the world’s top football clubs and global sports brands. The Club has won 27 trophies in just ten years, making it the most successful football club in France. Paris Saint-Germain has attracted many great players including Ronaldinho, Beckham, Ibrahimovic, and currently Messi, Neymar Jr and Mbappé, some of the best players in the world. The international popularity of the Club never stops growing.
It is now the one of the most followed clubs in the world, expanding from zero to a community over 100 million social media followers in ten years. This pioneering Club – which includes men’s football, women’s football, handball and judo squads – made the ground-breaking move to incorporate an Esports team in 2016. Giving back to the community is fundamental to the Club, which has drastically increased the capacity of its Foundation to develop wide-reaching and efficient programmes to help underprivileged youngsters.
The activity held on Saturday 27th November 2021 was aimed at cleaning the streets of Palma town and enhancing the culture of working together in transforming their community. The activity was conducted jointly with the population and local authorities as well as the Mozambican National Security Organs.
The community work initiated by Rwanda Security Force (RSF) aimed at not only contributing to cleanliness of the town but also bridging the gap between the population and leadership at different levels in enhancing stabilisation efforts.
The inaugural community work attracted about 4,000 residents of Palma town. The activity was attended by the key leaders of the district including Mr. Martins Egidis Nkamate, the Director of Infrastructure in Palma District and local government representatives.
The cleaning activities covered main road, feeder roads, streets, roadside waterways along 3 kilometer stretch of Palma town.
Nkamate who spoke on behalf of the Government of Mozambique, commended the Rwanda Security Force for their support and contribution to the Peace and Security in Mozambique. He also encouraged the local population and leaders to continue participating in community work in order to rebuild and protect infrastructure in the district.
Dubbed “Human Rights and Conservation” , the module will combine social law, conservation related laws, social requirements in efficient natural resources management and protocol to be considered in appropriate land use.
Experts revel that integrating human rights principles in conservation, motivates people to engage in biodiversity conservation.
The Principle of IPRC Kitabi, Richard Nasasira has said that the module was launched drawing an inspiration from a report presented worldwide indicating that some citizens’ rights are violated during conservation efforts.
“Citizens and employees working in parks are sometimes deprived of their rights because of conservation efforts. We have often heard park employees killed [by wild animals]. It is apparent that their rights to live are deprived under such circumstances. We also heard citizens prohibited to consume products sourced from the environment and damages caused by animals in protected areas which deprive them of their rights to food sufficiency among others,” he said.
“Considering our responsibility to impart knowledge in the areas of environment conservation to ensure long-lasting impact, we were interested to introduce this module. Everyone needs a deeper understanding of related components, because conservation is a collective responsibility,” added Nasasira.
The Head of wildlife conservation department at IPRC Kitabi, Isidore Ndagijimana, said that conservation related components were already taught at the college but with no special emphasis.
“We expect to change the existing methodology of teaching related courses to receive attention they deserve because we are convinced that a student shares with parents what he/she learnt from school,” he noted.
Ndagijimana explained that practicing students will have time to enlighten communities surrounding protected areas on their rights, responsibilities and environment related laws.
Speaking to the media, students from the college expressed delight for the new module expected to impart them with deeper knowledge on how human rights and environment conservation should coexist.
“We would learn courses related to human rights in nature conservation but did not go deeper into much detail. The new module will specifically enlighten the relationship between human rights and conservation. This will help people to enjoy better livelihoods and reduce threats on biodiversity,” said Pacifique Sugira.
Aline Dufitumukiza, a finalist student at IPRC Kitabi stressed that the module comes in handy for students to perform well on the labour market in nature conservation.
The launch of new module which took place at IPRC Kigali on Thursday 25th November 2021, brought together students, government officials, representatives from organizations with interventions in conservation while others attended virtually.
Richard Muvunnyi, Head of Wildlife Veterinary Unit, Research and Monitoring at Rwanda Development Board (RDB) commended IPRC Kitabi for the efforts highlighting that it is a great milestone in conservation efforts.
He explained that maintaining equilibrium in nature conservation and human rights has a great impact to sustainable development.
The human rights and conservation module is a result of a partnership with different stakeholders including U.S Fish and Wildlife Services, USAID, US Forest Department of Agriculture, CARPE, RIFFEAC among others.
Based in Nyamagabe district, IPRC Kitabi has an advanced diploma programme in wildlife and conservation technologies.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a new coronavirus variant to be “of concern” and named it Omicron.
The WHO has revealed that it has a large number of mutations, and early evidence suggested an increased reinfection risk.
It was first reported from South Africa on 24th November 2021, and has also been identified in Botswana, Belgium, Hong Kong and Israel.
Considering the severity of the new variant, different countries have banned to and from southern Africa.
The Ministry of Health has said that the quarantine for arriving passengers takes effect from 28th November 2021.
“Following confirmation of a serious new COVID-19 variant detected in Southern Africa, the Ministry of Health is reinstating the obligatory 24-hour quarantine in designated hotels for all persons arriving into Rwanda, effective Sunday 28th November 2021 at noon,” reads the statement in part.
Rwandans have been urged to continue respecting instituted COVID-19 preventive measures including proper wearing of face masks at all times, ensuring maximum ventilation in indoor spaces (keep doors and windows open as much as possible), avoiding crowds, crowded spaces and unnecessary social gatherings, maintaining physical distance of at least one meter form others as well as washing or sanitizing hands frequently.
“These measures are being taken to limit the spread of the new variant and protect the gains Rwanda has made so far in managing COVID-19 pandemic and reopening the economy. Additional measures will be announced in the coming days,” adds the statement.
Rwanda had removed 24-hour quarantine for all arriving vaccinated passengers on 14th October 2021.
The Minister of Health, Dr. Daniel Ngamije has told RBA that the new variant spreads fast.
He revealed that Rwanda has not yet started considering the imposition of lockdown because research is underway to gather more relevant information about the variant.
So far, different countries including the United Kingdom and the Netherlands among others from Europe have banned flights South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Eswatini and Lesotho.
The upcoming Umushyikirano will take place from 20th to 21st December 2021 at Kigali Convention Centre.
It will bring together government officials, parliamentarians, Rwandans within the country and abroad and journalists among others.
Senior government officials are expected to sign performance contracts during the National Dialogue Council.
The 18th National Dialogue Council cancelled in 2020 was scheduled on 16th December 2020. It was cancelled by the cabinet meeting held on 14th December which also postponed all national events.
During the council, the president delivers ‘State of the Nation’ address.
Umushyikirano is Kinyarwanda’s equivalent of ‘dialogue’. During the dialogue, participants exchange ideas, share experiences, peer review and question each other. Today Umushyikirano is known as the National Dialogue Council.
As part of efforts to reconstruct Rwanda and nurture a shared national identity, the Government of Rwanda drew on aspects of Rwandan culture and traditional practices to enrich and adapt its development programs to the country’s needs and context.
The result is a set of Home Grown Solutions – culturally owned practices translated into sustainable development programs. One of these Home Grown Solutions is Umushyikirano.
Governed by the Rwandan Constitution (Article 168), Umushyikirano is a forum where participants debate issues relating to the state of the nation, the state of local government and national unity. The Office of the Prime Minister is responsible for the overall co-ordination of Umushyikirano.
The ceremony took place on Thursday 25th November 2021 at Presidential Palace located in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia.
Amb. Kamanzi will represent Rwanda to the country with residence in Moscow, Russia.
President Sarkissian congratulated the Ambassador on appointment and wished him productive work.
The ambassador also assured that he will make all efforts to promote the relations between Rwanda and Armenia.
Sarkissian said that Armenia and Rwanda have many commonalities, a similar history, where both countries have passed through heavy challenges. He however stressed that they also have many advantages which they can turn into success.
As for the possible directions for cooperation, the Armenian President said that the two countries have coinciding interests, the achievements of Rwanda in electronic governance and new technologies are impressing, and according to him, the partnership in these areas could be promising.
Sarkissian said that he links Armenia’s future with the development of modern technologies, science and education and highlighted implementing joint innovative and research projects, as well as the cooperation in high technologies and innovations.
The suspects; Vedaste Uwimana, 25, and his spouse Jeannette Tuyishimire, 18, were arrested after defrauding a trader in a shop where they bought goods and two mobile money agents, whom they paid fake bills after depositing money on their mobile account.
According to the Eastern region Police spokesperson, Chief Inspector of Police (CIP) Hamdun Twizeyimana, the suspects were apprehended following a tip-off by the victims.
“On Thursday, November 25, Police received information almost at the same time from three different victims, who had been defrauded by the couple,” CIP Twizeyimana said.
“Uwimana had paid a fake bill of Frw5,000 at the shop located in Akabungo cell of Mugesera sector after buying sugar and body lotion.
Shortly after, another report from Nyamugari cell in the same sector indicated that Tuyishimire (wife to Uwimana) had also defrauded two mobile money agents after they deposited Rwf25,000 and 35,000 on her account and she paid them with fake bills in the denominations of Rwf5, 000,” CIP Twizeyimana added.
An operation, he added, was swiftly conducted and the suspects were arrested at their home in Gisenyi Village, Nyamugari Cell and handed over to RIB at Zaza station.
“Law enforcement organs are still working together to find out the source of the fake money and other members of the group that either counterfeit or circulate fake bills.”
Article 269 of Law No 68/2018 determining offenses and penalties in general states; any person who, fraudulently counterfeits, falsifies or alters coins or bank notes which are legal tender in Rwanda or abroad, notes issued by the Treasury with its stamp or brand, either banknotes or alike that have legal tender in Rwanda or abroad, or one who introduces or issues in Rwanda such effects or notes with knowledge that they are forged or falsified, commits an offence.
Upon conviction, he/she is liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than five years and not more than seven years.
