Former President of the Senate Dr. Vincent Biruta has been appointed as the new Minister of Education replacing Pierre Damien Habumuremyi who became the Prime Minister.
The Announcement from the Office of the Prime Minister declared that President of the Republic basing on the Constitution has nominated different Ministers.
– Minister of Education, Dr. Vincent Biruta
– Minister of Youth, Jean Philibert Nsengimana
– Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources Dr Agnes Kalibata
Gasabo district RPF ladies are compiling a report to analyze better opportunities to uplift their standards of living and how wealthy women in the district can help the poor one via their forums and cooperatives in order to bring government programs into action.
This was announced by Assoumpta Kabanyana Secretary of the RPFwomen’s forum in Gasabo district during their meeting that intended to remind them of their responsibilities as RPF Cadres held this weekend at the RPF district offices in Kimironko-Remera sector in Kigali.
Kabanyana said. “We have rich women in our district and the poor ones. We are studying how to bring them together so that the poor ones can also benefit from the rich ones via the formation of different forums and cooperatives.”
She added that by January 2012, the study will done and then put it in action.
Commissioner Bernadette Kanzayire, in charge of Gender Promotions in RPF at the national level present at the meeting as the chief guest while reminding them of their responsibilities pointed out, “if you we realize our responsibilities as RPF women, our children and husbands as well will also realize them. This will bring us to fulfill RPF manifesto and to put in place government programs that will bring about sustainability to the country.”
She challenged them to speed up government programs as RPF party and also to fight against challenges that may hinder party’s anticipated targets.
Kanzayire also urged them to form associations and forums as one way to fight poverty and to ensure a steady economy among them.
The Minister of Finance and Economic Planning , John Rwangombwa and the World Bank Country Manager for Rwanda, Mimi Ladipo have today signed a US$125 million International eighth Development Association (IDA) Poverty Reduction Financing Agreement.
The Eighth Poverty Reduction Support Financing (PRSF-8) will help the Government’s implementation priorities in its medium term strategy, the Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy.
Given Rwanda’s status as a blend country, US$60 million of the funds are on IDA grant terms and US$65 million are on IDA credit terms.
The PRSF-8 is the first operation in the third series of World Bank Poverty Reduction Support operations for Rwanda launched in 2002.
The new series particularly supports the development of policies that facilitate increased private sector investment and involvement and ease constraints to broad based growth.
“In order for Rwanda to sustainably increase its revenue base, it is important for the Government to continue to focus on developing a Foreign Direct Investment and to agree on a comprehensive private sector development strategy”.
“In particular we encourage Rwanda to act decisively to remove any remaining constraints, including as relates to infrastructure, anti-competitive policies and practices, and taxation, to inward investment and to the development of the private sector,” Said Mimi Ladipo.
During the PRSF8-10 priority areas of support will be policy measures aimed at: (i) supporting the facilitation of trade and investments; (ii) increasing access to electricity and improved infrastructure services; (iii) raising private sector participation in the agricultural sector;
Others include (iv) increasing the quality and relevance of education to build a skilled workforce; (v) improving service delivery through focused and strategic civil service reform; and (vi) strengthening the management of public resources, including increasing transparency and accountability.
The PRSF-8 financing is dependent on progress against EDPRS objectives as measured by the Common Performance Assessment Framework relied upon by all budget support partners in Rwanda.
The most recent XIV Joint Budget Support Review, held on October 24-25, 2011, showed that Rwanda is making good progress in terms of implementing the targets and policy actions within the harmonized framework of budget support.
GIZ a German NGO in Rwanda has vowed to strengthen youth friendly health centers as a way of improving reproductive health services especially in rural areas.
The country director Ulrike Maenne highlighted that the youth are benefiting from the program and have also gained the courage to visit the health centers also offering elaborated information about various health issues.
“Awareness of HIV/AIDS for instance is essential and how to avoid the risks of acquiring non-communicable diseases,” she gave the remarks during a gathering of staff and their families.
“we also have an internal sensitization program because we want our employees to be healthy, in similar gatherings which happen yearly, there’re always topics to be discussed mainly on better health practices, hence we would also want to implement this further to the public,” said Maenne.
Liza Girrbach a public health specialist working for GIZ said plans are underway to reach out to the youth and educate them on reproductive health.
“This is very important but we need to train health practitioners since there’s lack of human resource especially in remote areas”.
In this respect, GIZ through the ministry of health has been supporting trainings of midwives, counselors and gynecologists.
“These kind of services also facilitate better maternal health meaning there’re would be a reduction of infant mortality,” she advised.
Currently, the youth friendly health centers are present in five districts; Nyaruguru,Kisagara, Huye, Gicumbi and Musanze.
Visa Inc. and the Government of Rwanda announced a wide-reaching Charter of Collaboration to develop localized solutions to extend access to financial services to local and international consumers throughout the country.
The partnership was announced today at a joint press conference attended by the Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda, Ambassador Claver Gatete and Elizabeth Buse, Group President, Asia Pacific, Central Europe, Middle East and Africa, Visa Inc.
According to the press statement, the partnership is a step in the Government of Rwanda’s Vision 2020 plan, the country’s blueprint to become a middle-income nation within the coming decade, with per capita income of $1000 by 2020, up from $220 in 2000.
At the event, Ambassador Gatete said: “In all economies, well developed financial systems are essential for sustained economic growth. The partnership between the Government of Rwanda and Visa is an opportunity to increase efficiency and inclusion through the use of electronic financial services.”
Amb. Gatete also announced, “This partnership is aligned with the National Bank of Rwanda’s strategy to reduce the widespread usage of cash and increase liquidity within the banking system, which ultimately reduces interest rates and improves price stability.”
Buse described Visa’s role in the partnership, “We are deploying our unique expertise and assets bringing the benefits of electronic payments and banking to emerging markets like Rwanda.”
“By working with governments and stakeholders around the world to better understand the challenges of the underserved, we can adapt our approach to ensure that we are not only sharing our payments expertise, but also delivering meaningful local programs that meet the needs of governments and their citizens. In the long-run we believe this will also open up new growth opportunities for Visa.”
Noting the importance of government partnerships to Visa’s global strategy, Joseph W. Saunders, Chairman and CEO of Visa Inc., at the event said: “Visa believes that everyone has the right to have access to basic financial and payment services, and we are very pleased to be able to work with a government as committed to this vision as the Rwandan government.
Partnerships such as this are the key to delivering the promise of economic growth and financial inclusion that we know electronic payment systems can provide.”
The success of that plan relies on a number of pillars, including shifting to a knowledge-based economy, private sector development and improving infrastructure.
The statement also reveals, “Creating public-private partnerships is also a key component of Visa’s global growth strategy. The company’s aim to generate 50 percent of its revenue from markets outside of the United States by 2015 will partly be enabled through its ability to build, buy and deploy new technologies that extend its products to geographies where electronic payments are limited today, such as Rwanda.”
The Charter of Collaboration encompasses 12 initiatives structured around three key areas identified by the Government of Rwanda and Visa as vital to the development of a fully-inclusive financial system; Lay the Foundations for Electronic Payments, Enable Rwanda to take advantage of modern technologies to reach Rwandans who are under-served by traditional payments infrastructure, and capacity building.
Visa is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable digital currency.
Mcleod Russel India under its Borelli Tea Holdings Ltd. (Borelli),has taken full management of Gisovu Tea Company pending completion of certain formalities.
The said formalities having been completed, Gisovu has issued 12,740 Ordinary shares of RWF 1,00,000 each being 60% of the paid-up share capital of the said Company to Borelli on December 01, 2011.
With the issue of the above shares to Borelli, Gisovu has become a subsidiary of Borelli and a step-down subsidiary of Mcleod Russel India Ltd.
The Mcleod Russel India Ltd stock closed the day at Rs.226.75, up by Rs.5.80 or 2.63%. The stock hit an intraday high of Rs.228.95 and low of Rs.223.25
Rwanda Defense minister Gen.James Kabarebe is in a four day visit to the republic of Côte d’Ivoire.
Gen.Kabarebe is expected to hold talks with the country’s leaders on the program of country’s reconstruction following the destruction caused by war and political instability.
Côte d’Ivoire government has expressed interest for learning from Rwanda’s reconstruction Experience following the devastation caused by the 1994 Tutsi Genocide.
The government of Côte d’Ivoire is faced with a major challenge of disarming citizens that are in possession with fire arms, demobilisation of former combatants (Rwanda has demoblised over 78,000 former soldiers) establishing a military representative of all groups and establishing citizens unity and reconciliation program.
Gen. Kabarebe on Sunday met with his Côte d’Ivoire counterpart Paul Koffi Koffi.
He will also meet with Côte d’Ivoire Prime Minister Guillaume Soro and Charles Konan-Banny the leader of the country’s Unity and reconciliation commission.
Gen. Kabarebe’s Visit follows the recent visit to Rwanda of Côte d’Ivoire Prime Minister Guillaume Soro.
The Minister of State in charge of Transport Dr. Alexis Nzahabwanimana has urged entrepreneurs to meet deadlines of what they agree in contracts they sign.
Dr. Nzahabwanimana said this during his visit that intended to assess the evolution of roads built at Taba in Butare town in Huye district, Southern Province.
He said the contractor is delaying in accomplishing the activities, differently from the contract.
He said, “According to the contract the entrepreneur didn’t meet the deadline of building these roads. They also have to improve their work and meet the deadline to achieve the development”.
The representative of the company building the roads promised that before 2012, all Taba roads will be ready for use.
Some contractors delay to accomplish what they sign in the contracts between them and different institutions including government agencies.
The delay affects the way people expect to meet their goals to reach development, there are cases where entrepreneurs setback to meet the deadlines to complete what is expected to be accomplished in a given period.
The Economist Conferences, a division of the Economist Group, publishers of The Economist, are hosting The East Africa Summit in Kigali to be held on December 6th-7th, 2011 at Kigali Serena Hotel.
The conference will attract international business leaders and policy-makers to engage in a frank, open debate about the region’s prospects and explore emerging opportunities for companies seeking to grow their East African businesses.
Under the theme ‘Unlocking the business potential of a dynamic region’, The summit aims at bringing together more than 150 international business leaders, investors, policymakers and influential commentators.
Participants will take an incisive look into East Africa’s new role in the fast changing global business arena.
Clare Akamanzi, the COO of the Rwanda Development Board noted, “The conference will provide an opportunity for Rwandan private sector to create gainful partnerships, break into new markets and seize new opportunities along with regional and international businesses.”
Akamanzi added that the summit will provide a window through which the world can gain a better perspective of Rwanda and the East African region and offer a platform for showcasing to participants, not only Rwanda’s investor-friendly and predictable environment, but also its enormous opportunities in a vast array of sectors in Rwanda and the East Africa region.
“Rwanda was this year named as the third most competitive country in sub-saharan Africa after Mauritius and South Africa and the third easiest in Doing Business in Africa. Therefore this conference, which is welcome, will further boost Rwanda’s and the region’s attractiveness for investments.” Akamanzi stressed.
Notable speakers at the summit will include the Hon Raila Odinga, Prime Minister of Kenya; Richard Sezibera, Secretary General, East African Community; Bob Collymore, CEO, Safaricom; Pierre Trouilhat, CEO, Nestle Equatorial African region; Gordon Boyle, Chief Executive, BMMI Group; Joe Mucheru, Regional Lead sub-Saharan Africa, Google and a host of others.
The summit discussions will focus on the future trading prospects for East Africa in a globalised economy, examining which markets will perform strongest in coming years, the most compelling opportunities for investors, and the practical steps governments should take to ensure the region fulfils its economic potential.
The East African Community member states of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi represent a fast growing economy of $74bn.
If other potential members like Ethiopia, DRC and South Sudan become integrated successfully in the future, the region has the capability to gain enough influence for global competition.
Emerging investment opportunities between now and 2020 will be discussed, including trade, manufacturing and investment as well as the transformation of the business environment, the East African labour market and the next generation financial services.
Effective yesterday the border staff of both Rwanda and Burundi located Nemba in Bugesera have started working under the same building, they jointly offer services related to customs and immigration.
The cooperation is part of an agreement between revenue authorities from both countries with an aim of improving quick services rendered especially at the custom department.
Eugene Higiro a representative of the private sector in Bugesera district noted that he expects the cooperation to improve services since traders using the borders have been complaining of wasting time which affects their business since most of the time they don’t deliver their goods on time.
Kieran Holmes the commissioner general of Burundi Custom Union advised that facilitating traders would encourage trade between both countries hence raising the revenues.
The Rwanda Revenue Authority commissioner general Ben Kagarama commended the cooperation assuring necessary infrastructure at the border post will be hastened. He expressed optimism that there will be more activities at the joint border.
“The cooperation means attracting more activities especially in trade that’s why we want to improve our infrastructure. Meanwhile, we have bought modern weighing scales and more is yet to come,” he said.
So far financial institutions have showed interests in building banks at the border, in terms of hospitality there’re guest houses to accommodate visitors.