{"id":55092,"date":"2025-08-01T15:41:19","date_gmt":"2025-08-01T15:41:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/rwanda-in-the-process-of-getting-umuganura-inscribed-on-unesco-world-heritage\/"},"modified":"2025-08-04T10:34:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-04T10:34:10","slug":"rwanda-in-the-process-of-getting-umuganura-inscribed-on-unesco-world-heritage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/rwanda-in-the-process-of-getting-umuganura-inscribed-on-unesco-world-heritage\/","title":{"rendered":"Rwanda in the process of getting Umuganura inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The disclosure was made by the Minister of Local Government, Dominique Habimana, during this year\u2019s national celebration of Umuganura (thanksgiving festival) in Musanze District on August 1, 2025.<\/p>\n<p>The event brought together representatives from various sectors, including agriculture, tourism, industry, local residents, and government officials. The day served as a moment of reflection, gratitude, and reaffirmation of cultural values.<\/p>\n<p>Highlighting the significance of Umuganura in both historical and contemporary contexts, the Minister noted: \u201cUmuganura stands out as the only festivity deeply rooted in Rwandan culture. This is why the Government of Rwanda reinstated it in 2012, and efforts are underway to have it recognized on the UNESCO World Heritage List.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Minister Habimana emphasized that Umuganura is not just a symbolic tradition, but a practical framework of values that continue to guide Rwanda\u2019s development. <\/p>\n<p>He traced its origins back to the era of King Gihanga Ngomijana and its interruption by colonial rule in 1925. The festival was officially reinstated in 2012 by the Government of National Unity under the leadership of President Paul Kagame.<\/p>\n<p>The Minister noted that the celebration is no longer limited to agriculture and livestock, but now includes achievements in sectors such as education, technology, tourism, arts, and industry. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome may perceive Umuganura as merely an act of sharing, but while sharing is an important component, it is not the sole essence of the celebration. Umuganura represents a year-long process of performance contract, planning, and striving for progress,\u201d Habimana noted.  <\/p>\n<p>The festival\u2019s theme this year\u2014\u201cUmuganura: The Source of Unity and Foundation for Self-Reliance\u201d\u2014captured its evolving role in modern Rwandan society.<\/p>\n<p>The Minister also issued a special appeal to the youth, encouraging them to embrace and preserve the values of Umuganura. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cUmuganura is not just another celebration. It is a unique heritage and tradition that defines our identity. I urge you to uphold it, embrace it in your daily lives, and pass it on to future generations,\u201d he noted. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cElders have a responsibility to instill this tradition in the youth, ensuring its preservation. Celebrating Umuganura reminds us to keep Rwanda at the heart, wherever we are, and to carry this legacy with pride,\u201d the Minister added. <\/p>\n<p>Umuganura embodies values such as hard work, resilience, sacrifice, and patriotism\u2014principles that continue to drive Rwanda&#8217;s progress.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-91879\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/jpg\/gxq0dzcxsaa7iwp.jpg\" alt=\"Minister Habimana described Umuganura as a journey of planning, resilience, and achievement. \" \/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-91880\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/jpg\/gxqb-xkwqaazwlw.jpg\" alt=\"Celebrations at national level were held in Musanze District. \" \/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-91881\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/jpg\/umu-6.jpg\" alt=\"The celebrations were also marked by traditional performances \" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Government of Rwanda is in the process of seeking the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage recognition for Umuganura, a centuries-old thanksgiving festival deeply rooted in Rwandan culture. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":2000091878,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[75],"byline":[160],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-55092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-homenews","byline-theophile-niyitegeka"],"bylines":[{"id":160,"name":"Th\u00e9ophile Niyitegeka","slug":"theophile-niyitegeka","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":3}],"contributors":[{"id":160,"name":"Th\u00e9ophile Niyitegeka","slug":"theophile-niyitegeka","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":3}],"featured_image":{"id":2000091878,"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/gxq0dzcxsaa7iwp.jpg","alt":"","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":0,"height":0,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/gxq0dzcxsaa7iwp.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/gxq0dzcxsaa7iwp.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/gxq0dzcxsaa7iwp.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/gxq0dzcxsaa7iwp.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/gxq0dzcxsaa7iwp.jpg","width":0,"height":0}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55092","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/62"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55092"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55092\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000091878"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55092"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=55092"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=55092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}