During their visit to City of Kigali this Sunday, the delegation that as well includes mayors and members of parliament were taken through the vision of Kigali City and the implementation process of the city master plan which they commended and advised to keep it all-inclusive. Minister Lewintz said that the way Rwanda is developing after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, compares well with how Germany and Rhénanie Palatinat developed after Second World War.

“After Second World War, Germany seemed completely demolished, everything had been razed down; it required us to reconstruct our cities. After the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi too, Rwanda and Kigali had been destroyed. It requires you to engage on a continuous reconstruction process, ” Lewintz said.

Speaking to Media , City of Kigali Mayor, Pascal Nyamulinda said that Rhénanie Palatinat officials visit Rwanda every year to observe the progress of the country in different programmes.

City of Kigali officials told their Rhénanie Palatinat counterparts that by 2040, 90% of city dwellers will be living in affordable houses and city transportation will be smoother in a cleaner greener environment.src: Igihe

In a bit to build a safer society, Rwanda National Police extended its anti-crime awareness campaign to over 1500 students from three high schools in Ruhango District and tutored them on their role in community policing as means to crime prevention.

The students tutored were from Collège Advantiste de Gitwe (ESAPAG) GS RUSORORO and Ecole Secondaire de Murama (ESM).

Precisely, the students were educated on preventing unwanted pregnancies and their consequences be it to their own lives, the society or the children they would deliver.

In her address to the students and the teachers that attended the awareness meeting, the District Community Liaison Officer (DCLO) Inspector of Police (IP) Angelique Abijuru called for collective community efforts in combating teenage pregnancies and to address the underlying issues that create unplanned child bearing.

She went on to tell the students that cases of unwanted pregnancies among young girls are most times related to drug consumption, luck of parental care and warned them about risks such as contracting STDs.

IP Abijuru particularly pointed out that any student who consumes drugs can never perform well in school, whereas majority drop out of school.

She told the student to avoid consuming illegal substances like illicit brew and narcotics saying that, “addicts of such substance always have a bad ending since they are the ones involved in crimes like assault, theft, rape and defilement among others.”

“They usually commit such offenses when they are under influence of drugs; that’s why we have to collectively fight these vices by ensuring you report anyone who consumes or traffics them, to the police,” she said.

The DCLO urged the schools’ administration to conduct regular inspections among students, collaborate with law enforcers and consult with parents about their respective roles in fighting drug abuse.

Following the meeting, students committed themselves to join in the fight against drugs and also pledged to spread the message to other students and youth within Rwandan communities.

The prestigious event took place in the country’s thriving capital, Kigali, on 10th October, with hundreds of leaders from across the hospitality industry attend the glittering red carpet ceremony.

George Ndirangu and MakedaMahadeoboth hugely experienced as hosts and presenters compered the event which will take place at the five star Radisson Blu Hotel & Convention Centre, alongside the Africa Hotel Investment Forum (AHIF) and AviaDev Africa (10th-12th October).

The leading hotel investment conference that connects business leaders from the international and local markets, driving investment into tourism projects, infrastructure and hotel development across Africa, AHIF is attended by the highest calibre international hotel investors of any conference in Africa.

Meanwhile AviaDev Africa is a unique event bringing together airports, airlines, governments, industry suppliers and tourism authorities to determine the future air connectivity and infrastructure development of Africa. The event provides an opportunity for the aviation and hotel development communities to share intelligence on their future plans, catalysing tourism development on the continent.

Speaking ahead of the event, WTA President and Founder Graham E. Cooke said: “It is an honour for World Travel Awards to be here in Rwanda, for the very first time.

“The heart of Africa, Rwanda has become rightfully known for its spectacular scenery – think thundering waterfalls, towering mountains and virgin rainforests – and rare wildlife.

”This is a fantastic opportunity for Rwanda to claim its rightful place as Africa’s rising star and I can’t wait to welcome all our nominees next Tuesday, as we recognise the leaders among them”

World Travel Awards was established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry.

Today, the World Travel Awards brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of quality, with winners setting the benchmark to which all others aspire.

Each year, World Travel Awards covers the globe with a series of regional gala ceremonies staged to recognise and celebrate individual and collective success within each key geographical region.

World Travel Awards Gala Ceremonies are widely regarded as the best networking opportunities in the travel industry, attended by government and industry leaders, luminaries and international print and broadcast media.

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Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga has pulled out of October’s election re-run. Mr Odinga said his withdrawal would give the electoral commission enough time to introduce reforms that will help deliver a more credible election.

The Supreme Court annulled the result of the original 8 August poll after finding irregularities and declaring it “neither transparent or verifiable”.
The electoral commission had declared incumbent Uhuru Kenyatta the winner.
It said Mr Kenyatta had won by a margin of 1.4 million votes.
The re-run was due to take place on 26 October, but Mr Odinga said on Tuesday: “We have come to the conclusion that there is no intention on the part of the IEBC [electoral commission] to undertake any changes to its operations and personnel… All indications are that the election scheduled for 26 October will be worse than the previous one.”

As a result, he said, “considering the interests of the people of Kenya, the region and the world at large” it was best that he withdrew from the race.
The opposition party has previously made clear its participation in the election was contingent on reforms being made.
It believes the election will have to be cancelled as a result of MrOdinga’s withdrawal, allowing “adequate time to undertake the reforms necessary to conduct an election that is in strict conformity with the constitution, the relevant laws and the constitution”.

The government has previously said the election will be held as usual and the president will be sworn in.
MrOdinga has also called on people to protest on Wednesday, using the slogan “no reform, no elections”.
In September, Kenya’s director of public prosecutions, KeriakoTobiko, asked the police and anti-corruption agency to investigate whether any electoral or criminal offences had been committed by members of the electoral commission.
He asked investigators to examine allegations that two senior opposition officials had gained illegal access to the commission’s servers.
Although no individual had been blamed, he added, this did not prevent the court from ordering an investigation.

During Music Education Conference, the Director-General of the Rwanda Education Board has explained that Music plays a great role in learning, that’s why it was added to the primary and secondary new curriculum.

He added that in the new curriculum, teaching music was empowered, thus, after finishing Primary school the pupil will be able to use at least one musical instrument either Piano, Guitar, drum, or trumpet.

Through Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), South Korea donates to the Rwandan government 2000 pianos worth 5 million Rwandan francs for each, which was distributed in different schools of Thousand hills.

13 Teachers were trained, to train others in the next phase to ensure the efficiency of teaching music in Rwanda.

The Ministry of Education, through Rwanda Education Board, embarked on reviewing its curriculum to align it with national aspirations and to ensure that the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values acquired by Rwandans in schools meet the challenges of the 21st century.

President Joseph Kabila has refused to rule out standing in elections when next they are held in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

According to a former U.S. ambassador and one-time Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Herman Cohen, 46-year-old Kabila at a meeting last week failed to rule himself out in the next elections.

“I met with Kabila last Thursday at his request. He refused to give me assurance he will not run for DRC president again. Big disappointment,” Cohen said in a tweet on Monday.
I met with Kabila last Thursday at his request. He refused to give me assurance he will not run for DRC president again. Big disappointment.

The central African country has been plunged into a political crisis that has resulted in mass opposition protests usually met with heavy police crackdowns.

Incumbent Kabila is continuing as president until a new election is held – according to Kabila, soon as the necessary plans are put in place. He was barred from contesting for another term according to a peace deal brokered by the Catholic Church in late December last year.

The latest development is the strongest hint yet that he will seek to continue after 16 years in charge. He has served his constitutionally mandated two-term limit. He holds the majority in parliament and it is yet to be seen how he would manage to tinker with the laws to allow him to stand

Burera Garment Factory, a joint project of Burera district and Japanese venture capital firm Noguchi Holdings, will soon start operations in Rwanda’s Northern Province district.

The factory, which has trained over 100 workers, will offer direct jobs to over 600 people apart from generating employment for hundreds along the downward value chain.

The factory is part of Integrated Craft Production Centres (ICPC), locally known as ‘Udukiriro’. Noguchi has a majority shareholding of 52 percent, according to a leading English-language daily in the country.

Over 280 modern machines and a computerized cutting machine will be used to make over 480,000 clothes per month. The factory, which has signed a contract with a Hong Kong-based firm to export over 200,000 pieces of apparel per year, plans full production capacity to resume by January next year.

The development comes at a time when Rwanda moves to enforce a ban on used clothes that it holds partly responsible for the current trade deficit. It will also strengthen the government initiative to create 200,000 off-farm jobs annually by 2018,

If the textile sector operates at its full capacity, experts say the total foreign exchange savings induced by the domestic market recapturing strategy could reach almost $450 million annually.