Igihe

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  • Egypt Army Conflicts With Civilian President

    The newly sworn-in first civilian president of Egypt is at cross roads with Military council after the new leader ordered parliament to resume against court decision that had suspended it last month.

    The order by President Mohammed Morsy has pushed his leadership into a conflict with the military council which has said the decision to dissolve the country’s parliament must be upheld.

    The military closed parliament last month after a court ruling. Its latest intervention is seen by some as a challenge and warning to the president, sworn in barely a week ago.

    On President Morsy’s orders, the speaker has convened a meeting of parliament on Tuesday.

    Crowds were gathering in Tahrir Square ahead of the meeting called for 10:00 (08:00 GMT), in defiance of the military’s decision.

    The Muslim Brotherhood – which has the biggest bloc of seats in parliament – said it would participate on Tuesday “in a million-man march in support of the president’s decision and reinstating parliament”.

    The military council said it was confident “all state institutions” would respect the law and constitution.

    Analysts say the political truce in Egypt appears over.

  • Man Arrested Over Theft of Electric Cables

    A man identified as Etienne Rutagengwa 28, is being detained by Police in Nyarugenge district in connection with theft of electric cables belonging to Energy Water and Sanitation Authority (EWASA).

    Rutagengwa was arrested while stealing electrical cables in Rugunga cell at 1900hrs with intention to sell them to one Nzeyimana a resident of Gikondo, in Kicukiro district.

    The most targeted cables are those made in copper because they are sold as scrap to dealers who in turn sell them outside the country borders.

  • Workshop to Address Skills Gap in Natural Resources Management

    The Rwanda Development Board (RDB) organized July 9, a workshop on“Development of short courses programs”.

    The five-day workshop aims at developing the necessary skills of conservation organizations and individuals in the central Africa in fields related to sustainable forest and natural resources management.

    The workshop was organized through KCCEM (Kitabi College of Conservation of Environmental Management in conjunction with Network of Forestry and environmental management institutions in Central Africa (RIFFEAC) with the support from GIZ (German Agency for International Cooperation).

    The workshop taking place (9th -13th July) is convened at La PalisseNyandungu-Kigali.

    Participants are drawn from Higher Education institutions in various countries including Gabon, DRC, Central African Republic, Congo Brazzaville, Cameroon, Burundi, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Germany and Rwanda.

    They will share knowledge, skills and experience to deal with sustainable management of forests and biodiversity, while developing a curriculum of mid-level career professionals and communities needed in the region.

    Nasasira Richard the Acting Principal of Kitabi College of Conservation and Environmental Management (KCCEM) told said that 30 participants will discuss developing short courses for capacity enhancement in as far as sustainable management of forests and biodiversity is in general.

    He added that participants will learn from the Rwandan experiences on how trainings have been planned, executed and monitored.

    A field excursion in south west of Rwanda, where KCCEM is located at the edge of Nyungwe National Park will demonstrate how the college has organized and trained different groups of communities around Nyungwe National Park in conserving biodiversity.

    To challenge the skills gap in the mid-level management of the regions’ Natural resources, the government of Rwanda through the Rwanda Board of Development (RDB), established Kitabi College of Conservation and Environmental Management (KCCEM) aimed at developing capacity for Conservation and Environmental Management and tourism mid-level professionals in the Albertine rift region.

    Participants will be enabled to design and develop training programs that meet the training needs for management of natural resource challenges that include; lack of skilled personnel, as most skilled personnel are attracted by other high-level jobs.

    He noted,“We are joined here to work together to make sure that we contribute and add value to the present and future workforce that will lead our nations to the desired sustainable Development”NASASIRA, The KCCEM Principal emphasized.

    The workshop is aimed at facilitating all the network member institutions to develop short term training programs that will bridge the skills gap provided to highly trained personnel and the mid mid-level professionals who in most cases do much in the conservation sector.

    NASASIRA added that “the workshop will address the issue of qualified personnel who tend to seek employment outside of protected areas, which results in a skill gap in the mid-level management of the Albertine Rift’s natural resources, a problem that is common in all central African countries”.

    To find a sustainable solution, institutions in central African countries are advised to work together, contribute and add value to the present and future workforce that will lead our nations to the desired sustainable Development through very useful short term training programs.

  • Rwanda-France Agree on University Medical Cooperation

    The Ministry of Health on 9th July, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with France that will serve as a framework for a structured university medical cooperation that will improve healthcare in Rwanda.

    The Minister of Health, Dr. Agnes Binagwaho signed the MoU with Chantal Bes, the First Counsellor of Co-operation, Cultural and Development Affairs at the French Embassy in Rwanda.

    Dr. Binagwaho explained that the agreement would be specific to a few medical fields including intensive care and reanimation, emergency care, anesthesiology, cancer logy, oncology and plastic surgery among others.

    These priorities were set by both the health ministry officials and French officials, following meetings that were held in November 2011 and February 2012.

    The agreement states that the French actors are committed to come to Rwanda on a regular basis to provide theoretical and practical teaching, give Rwandan medics internship opportunities in France as well as assist Rwandan institutions in the elaboration of the academic curriculum.

    Based on the same agreement, Rwandans willing to study in France will also be able to acquire scholarships.

    Officials noted that the memorandum of understanding provides a general framework in which institutions from both sides have to develop their partnerships, in line with the priorities designed by the government of Rwanda.

    The Honorable Minister of Health noted that this initiative is another move that will equip Rwandan medics with higher skills which will in turn accelerate the much desired goal of ensuring quality service delivery in Rwanda.

  • Congolese Bishops Threaten to Moblise Citizens To Defend DRC

    Reports from DRCongo indicate that a plenary assembly of bishops, members of the Congolese National Episcopal Conference of Congo (Cenco) in Kinshasa have called upon Congolese citizens to say “No to the balkanization of the DRC”.

    The statement was made July 9 by Father Leonard Santedi, general secretary of the Cenco at the end of the assembly.

    Fr. Santedi also announced large-scale actions to be taken through all the Catholic parishes of DRCongo.

    “The war in eastern Congo is killing peaceful citizens. We are conducting an awareness campaign so that people realize that our country is at war and defend every inch of our territory, “He said.

    Meanwhile, Wednesday, Uganda will host an emergency meeting of eleven countries in the Great Lakes region aimed at discussing urgent measures of defusing the intensified fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

    Uganda government is the current chair of the 11-member International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), to prevent conflicts with potential for cross-border ramifications, while promoting sustainable regional peace, security and development.

    The urgent meeting will be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopian because ICGLR members will convene there, beginning Tuesday for a scheduled Inter-Ministerial meeting of the African Union – ahead of the continental bloc’s Heads of States and Governments summit later at the weekend.

  • African Students Suffer Racist Attacks in India

    Yannick Nihangaza a 23 years old student from Burundi studying in India in BSc Computer, 1st year in Lovely Professional University is another African victim of violence in India.

    He was stoned, brutally beaten and left on the road in Jalandhar (India) while walking to a party on April 22nd.

    He was taken to the hospital of Patiala by strangers were he has been in a coma for almost three months with no investigations of the incident being carried out.

    Nestor Ntibateganya, the father to Yannick wrote two letters to the Punjab government asking for justice for his child’s case but in vain.

    It is on June 25th that he wrote again to the chief minister of Punjab begging him for justice.

    “I am writing to you as a father writing to another father, someone who has known and experienced love of a child”

    Until the 6th of July, no investigations were done.

    “I hadn’t heard of this, I didn’t get any letter and I will investigate the matter. Everyone will get justice” said the Chief Minister of Punjab Badal Parkash.

    Ntibateganya said that he doesn’t know why the Indian Government took so long to respond but that it was alright since his son’s case was going to be taken care of.

    So far, two people have been arrested by the Jalandhar Police though there are others missing.

  • Schoolgirls Strike for Mini Skirts

    Reports from Kenya indicate that over 400 students of Rwathia Girls Secondary school in Kangema district went on strike demanding shorter and more ‘appealing’ uniform.

    The furious girls brokeout of school very early Monday morning in a peaceful protest demanding for shorter skirts (mini) as opposed to the long skirts (max) introduced as their new school uniform.

    Among other concerns was the high handedness by the deputy principal and small portions of food.

    According to Kenyan Press, the students started complaining on Saturday, but walked out of the school in the wee hours of Monday morning but were later intercepted by the police that escorted them to a police station until day break.

    The girls complained that the new purple uniform were too long, ugly and not meant for their age. They are said to have cut their skirts to their desired length, only to attract the wrath of the deputy head.

    According to area District Commissioner, Fredrick Muli, “They woke up their colleagues and decided to head home but police could not allow them to walk in the dark”.

  • EAC States Agree on Uniform Teaching of Science Subjects

    East African Universities and other institutions of higher learning in the regional member states have agreed on a uniform teaching of science subjects.

    The teaching of science courses such as medicine, agriculture, engineering and basic science must conform to the uniform minimum standards.

    “We have also agreed as regional universities to adhere to the published minimum standards,” said the chancellor of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) Prof Francis Gichaga during the official inauguration of the institution’s campus in Arusha.

    He said students pursuing programmes covered under the harmonised education system in the region were now free to transfer their credits to other institutions within the East African Community (EAC) bloc.

    Additionally, in collaboration with the Inter University Council of East Africa (IUCEA), education authorities in the region have developed and established the East African Quality Assurance Framework.

    “The measures introduced so far have not only improved the mobility and portability of students around the region, but also laid the foundation for improved higher education quality and improved comparability of the awards”, he said.

    Moreover, harmonisation of standards will also facilitate mobility of faculty and researchers within the region, a situation that is likely to boost further regional integration.

    Inaugurating the campus, the EAC deputy secretary general (Planning and Infrastructure) Dr Enos Bukuku, challenged the universities to set higher trends in higher education, research and innovation.

    “We need to move from generalised research results to specific research findings targeted and particularised to relevant and appropriate technologies that would contribute to the fight against poverty,” he said.

    JKUAT being an agricultural university, the EAC official stressed, should spearhead advancement in relevant agriculture research that could provide solutions for value addition in agriculture to raise incomes of farmers.

    Value addition processes of agriculture products will contribute towards increased incomes and promoting trade and investment within the EAC and beyond.

    The director of JKUAT Arusha Centre, Prof Ward Mavura, said the Kenyan university was registered to operate in the country by the Tanzania Commission of Universities (TCU) on March 18th last year.

    It enrolled its first batch of students in July 2011, all of them for diploma and certificate courses. In September this year, it will enroll students for five degree programmes.

    They are Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Business Information Technology, Bachelor of Purchasing and Supplies Management, Bachelor of Development Studies and Bachelor of Entrepreneurship.

    Post-graduate studies will include MSc and MBA programmes in Human Resources, Enterprising, and Procurement.

  • The Wife of The French President

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    Valerie Trierweiler was born on February 16th, 1965 as Valerie Massonneau in Angers ( Maine-et-loire) in France. She is a French political journalist and television host.

    She is the domestic partner of the 24th President of the French Republic, Francois Hollande.

    She is the fifth child of six. Her father, Jean Noel Massonneau lost a leg on landmine during World War II when she was 13, and he died at the age of 53, when she was 21. Her mother followed his death later on.

    Her grandfather and great grandfather owned the bank Massonneau & Co. which was then sold to the French bank Credit de l’Ouest.

    She studied history and political science and obtained a master of advanced studies in political science from the Sorbonne.

    In 2005, she hosted political talk shows most of them being interviews on the Direct 8 television channel. She hosted the talk show Le Grand 8 until 2007.

    In 2012, she announced that she would keep her contract as a journalist with the magazine Paris Match despite her partner being the elected French President.

    Valerie Trierweiler got married twice in her life. Her first was with her childhood friend Franck with whom she got divorced with no children.

    Her second marriage was to Denis Trierweiler, a sub editor at Paris Match Magazine,a writer and academic. This marriage produced three children but they got divorced in 2010 though the procedure took three years.

    She met Francois Hollande in 1988 during the parliamentary elections while he was still living with Segolene Royal.

    Their relationship began in 2005 when she was still a married woman and got publicly announced in October 2010 after her divorce with Denis Trierweiler was declared.

  • Rwandans in Mozambique Urged to Promote Unity

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    On 8th July 2012, Rwandan Diaspora in Mozambique organised a get together “Ubusabane” at Pestana Rovuma Hotel in Maputo, Mozambique.

    Ambassador Vincent Kagera and Mrs Muchimba Sikumba, Rwandan Honorary Consul to Mozambique attended the gathering.

    The get together party was attended by 130 Rwandan from Maputo city and surroundings.

    In his remark Louis Baziga, Chairman of Rwandan Diaspora in Mozambique encouraged the audience to work together to strengthen the Diaspora which has the objective to promote unity among Rwandan living abroad.

    He called on everybody to promote a good image of Rwanda. Rwanda is our home, we should be proud of our country, he concluded.

    Ambassador Vincent Karega in his address called upon Rwandan community to work hard in their respective sectors and defend their dignity. By doing so they are building Rwanda and its image.

    One of the members shared his experience on his visit to Rwanda in December 2011 after 17 years abroad.

    He said that the annual meeting “Inama y’umushyikirano” which he attended is the best forum for Rwandan living abroad to communicate their ideas to the leadership of Rwanda.

    The meeting was entertained by a music band composed by Rwandan artists.

    The audience was given opportunity to ask questions to the committee of the Diaspora and to the Ambassador, all were answered to the satisfaction of the audience.