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The Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and the European Union have today signed an additional cooperation agreement valued at Euros 89M.

The additional grant will boost developmental activities in the country above previous Euros 300M given to Rwanda to finance activities between 2008 to 2013 time framework.

John Rwangombwa-the Finance Minister signed on behalf of the government of Rwanda and Ambassador Michel Arrion, signed on behalf of European Union.

Amb. Arrion said that channelling the whole package through the national budget of Rwanda shows confidence EU has for Rwanda regarding utilisation of the funds.

He also said that the government of Rwanda regularly conducts consultative meetings with her development partners to map out priority programs for funding.

Amb. Arrion also hailed progress made in realisation of EDPRS targets.

In Bugesera district, the Natural Region Rural Infrastructure support Project (PAIRB) recently distributed 315 goats to 105 families under its irrigation development component.

Aimed at developing production, the project promotes integration of cattle and goat rearing with irrigation farming.

Beneficiaries from this support include families from Mayange, Rilima, Gashora and Rweru Sectors. Each family received 3 goats aged between 9 and 15 months.

PAIRB also distributed 200 cows to 200 families under its irrigation development component. The event took place in Gashora and Rweru Sectors of Bugesera District.

The project is going to distribute 1000 cows total of which 562 are already given to families in the project area.

Rwanda and Burundi Police chiefs have called for increased cooperation and information sharing between Police forces of the two countries.

This was announced Monday during a 3-day meeting held at Police General Headquarters in Kacyiru aimed at reviweing combat against cross boarder crimes.

The implementation status of the MoU between the two police institutions was reviewed and the follow up of the recommendations of the Chiefs of Police held last year in Ngozi, Burundi on July 21, 2011.

Inspector General of Police Emmanuel K. Gasana highlighted the success registered over the years in overcoming post conflict policing challenges and noted that, this was possible due to visionary leadership in the two countries.

The meeting also suggested cooperating in training, installing scanners at the common boarders, periodical review meeting, tracking of criminals as well as sharing culture and sporting activities.

IGP Gasana underscored the need for common strategy in the fight against transnational crimes emphasising cooperation in training and exchange of better practices to develop capabilities of the two police forces.

Director General of Burundi Police, CPP Fabien Ndayishimiye highlighted challenges of transnational crimes and the need for cooperation between the two sister institutions.

The Medical Production Division at Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC), former LABOPHAR located in Ngoma Sector in Huye district paid tribute to their staff killed during the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi.

The commemoration event was held Saturday.

This is the third time where LABOPHAR remembers their staff killed during the Genocide including; Buhayiro Alphonse, Kamanda Justin, Muhigana Felix and Nzeyimana Vincent.

At the ceremony Mourners lay wreaths at mass graves at Gahabwa Genocide memorial site in Kigembe Sector, Gisagara District, where a former staff of LABOPHAR’s called Kamanda Justin is buried.

The observance was attended by Huye District’s Vice Mayor in charge of Social Affairs, Niwemugeni Christine, the representatives of Police and Army in Huye District, representatives of RBC and also some delegates of institutions operating in Huye District.

People at the ceremony appreciated the initiative of RBC’s Medical Production Unit of building a monument dedicated to the innocent victims of the Genocide located at premises of LABOPHAR.

The Acting Head of RBC’s Medical Production (LABOPHAR) comforted survivors and assured them that LABOPHAR will continue supporting them.

The Institute of International Education (IIE) will launch African Centers of Excellence (ACE) for Women’s Leadership at Kigali Serena Hotel on May 11, 2012, an initiative worth USD 1 million grant from David and Lucile Packard Foundation.

The Akilah Institute of Women in Rwanda will host the event at Serena Hotel.

“The Akilah Institute for Women is honored to be the selected institution in Rwanda, and will be hosting and organizing the launch event,” says Patton Davis, Communications and Marketing Associate attached to the institute.

Already Representatives from all partner organizations are convening at Lake Muhazi Beach Resort for a weeklong retreat, holding sessions on ACE-specific topics such as gender equality, social transformation, and women’s leadership.

They are expected to meet with all Rwandese female Parliamentarians to discuss furthering women’s leadership in Rwanda.

The ACE for Women’s Leadership are meant to help women throughout Sub-Saharan Africa build new skills and train in leadership development. The initiative will take three years.

Other regional organizations to be supported under the initiative are in Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia. The organizations will carry out women’s advocacy and leadership training. “These groups work in three critical development areas: economic empowerment, family planning and girls’ education,” reads a press release.

Other organizations include: The Young Women’s Leadership Institute in Kenya, The Organization for Women in Self Employment (WISE) in Ethiopia, and Akina Mama wa Afrika in Uganda.

IIE itself has five Centers of Excellence, among them the IIE Center for Women’s Leadership Initiatives which serves as an umbrella for all of the work the Institute does with women’s empowerment in the Middle East, North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa.

ACE Leaders will fall under the auspices of IIE’s Center for Women’s Leadership Initiatives and be implemented by IIE’s office in Addis-Ababa.

As African centers of excellence, these organizations will expand and improve delivery of new skills and tools for women’s effective leadership; provide a space for sharing experiences and for networking to mobilize women for change; and offer state-of-the-art leadership training for the empowerment of young African women, the press release adds.

“The Institute is committed to increasing opportunities for women worldwide to pursue higher education and serve as effective leaders in diverse sectors. This is critical to achieving wide-scale gender equity around the world,” said IIE President and CEO Allan E. Goodman.

“IIE works to engage women from underserved groups and those who may not otherwise have access to leadership training and professional development opportunities, resulting in significant social and economic returns.”

Through the four new African centers of excellence, ACE-Leaders will also benefit established women leaders who need to strengthen their leadership skills and knowledge for better outcomes in girls’ education, women’s economic empowerment and family planning; and groups of young women who learn new skills to help them exercise leadership in a qualitatively different way using the ACE training.

The IIE Center for Women’s Leadership Initiatives provides opportunities for women worldwide to participate in cutting-edge training, professional development and exchange programs and pursue higher education.

Through the Center’s programs, women develop and join networks of peers, mentors and experts and serve as effective leaders in the public and private sectors around the world.

IIE works with sponsors to design programs that leverage strategic partnerships to engage emerging and established women leaders from underserved communities.

The new IIE Center for Women’s Leadership Initiatives builds on IIE’s highly successful work implementing major programs, such as Women in Technology, funded by the U.S. Department of State and Microsoft; E-Mediat, a dynamic public-private partnership

Also provides cutting-edge new media training to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) throughout the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region; and TechWomen, a new State Department initiative to foster more collaboration between the U.S. and the Middle East in the areas of business, technology and women’s leadership.

Founded in 1919, the Institute of International Education is a world leader in international education and exchange. IIE partners with foundations, governments, corporations, NGOs, and institutions of higher education to develop and implement scholarship and fellowship programs that attract the most talented researchers, students, and scholars leaders in the world.

These include the prestigious Fulbright and Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowships, administered by IIE on behalf of the U.S. Department of State, as well as more than 250 other initiatives that benefit over 24,000 men and women from 175 countries each year.

The outgoing speaker of East African Legistlative Assembly Hon. Abdirahim Abdi has commended President Paul Kagame for the support he rendered to the EALA since Rwanda joined the East African Community.

Hon. Abdi whose term ends before the end of 2012 was in the country to bid farewell to President Kagame.

Abdi thanked president Kagame for the supportive ideas, “During my term as EALA speaker, a lot was achived including EALA elections and promoting the EAC to the member states.”

Rwanda’s Minister for the East African Community, Mukaruliza Monique noted that the present East African Legistilative Assembly has achieve a lot including strengthing EALA as an institution which has become popular among regional citizens.

Hon. Abdirahim Abdi expected to be replaced by a Ugandan as the next EALA speaker, served as a law maker for 5years and later served 5years as speaker at EALA.

The Lake Victoria Basin Commission (LVBC) Strategic Plan 2011-2016 has been adopted at the 10th Meeting of the Sectoral Council of Ministers for Lake Victoria Basin.

The Sectoral Council held in Kigali, Rwanda, from 30th April to 5th May 2012, also directed the LVBC Secretariat to prepare a resource mobilisation strategy to guide its implementation.

The LVBC Strategic Plan 2011-2016 shall contribute to the realisation of the aspirations set out in the 4th East African Community Development Strategy 2011-2016.

The LVBC Strategic Plan has got six development objectives, including: (1) strengthening the coordination and management capacity of the LVBC Secretariat; (2) enhancing cooperation between LVBC and EAC organs, institutions and partners; (3) harmonising approaches for sustainable management and development natural resources of the Lake Victoria Basin.

The fourth is harmonisation of HIV&AIDS policy frameworks and practice for mobile population across the East African region; (5) improvement of safety of navigation and security on Lake Victoria; (6) promoting conservation and management of natural resources and biodiversity in and outside protected areas.

Other reports considered and adopted included progress reports for LVBC projects and programmes as well as finance, administrative and institutional matters.

In his statement, the Chairperson of the East African Community Council of Ministers and Minister for East African Community in the Republic of Kenya, Hon. Musa Sirma, hailed Sectoral Council for Lake Victoria Basin for making policy decisions that were yielding desired results.

He expressed appreciation for the support provided by EAC’s development partners including, the International Development Association, the European Community, the Global Environment Facility and the Swedish International Development Agency.

During the meeting, the LVBC Executive Secretary, Dr. Canisius Kanangire, highlighted the problems faced by the Lake Victoria Basin.

“The Basin continues to be faced by poverty, environmental degradation, avoidable deaths from droughts, floods, landslides and accidents, as well as climate change challenges.

“Whereas commendable results are being achieved through our ongoing projects and programmes, these huge challenges call for an adjustment in our focus to allow a balance between the software and hardware interventions so that LVBC can support investment in infrastructure to address the above-mentioned challenges,” said Dr. Kanangire.