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GENDER EQUITY AND CIVIL SOCIETY

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CONTENT

Gender equity and civil society

CONTENT

How Business Partners International’s funding helps SMEs grow

Rwanda Governance Scorecard 2016

BRALIRWA’s tale of innovating to ensure efficiency and safety

10. MANIFESTO REVIEW GENDER Gender equity and civil society

14. MANIFESTO REVIEW JUSTICE

DELIVERING JUSTICE THROUGH MEDIATION COMMITTEES

19. MANIFESTO REVIEW NATURAL RESOURCES EXPLOITING NATURAL RESOURCES

26. SPECIAL FEATURE

Rwanda Governance Scorecard 2016

36. ENGEN RWANDA:

Embracing cashless payments customers’ convenience

42. SMANIFESTO REVIEW HEALTH SERVICES STRENGTHENING HEALTHSERVICES FOR ALL

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Hope Magazine-Issue 71

publisher’s word Telling Rwanda’s Story www.hope-mag.com

TEAM Albert Ndata Latim Lawrence Himbana Alexandre Ishimwe Yvonne Ben Gasore Manzi Joseph Matthew Rwahigi Rumanzi Abraham Shema Ignace Shema Leonard Sindayirwanya Isabelle Erwin Winkler Keith Ntagozera Mutabazi Jackson Rebero Daniel Allan Migadde DESIGN & LAYOUT Dani K. PUBLISHED BY Hope Magazine Ltd. ADVERTISING & GENERAL INQUIRIES P.O.Box 6176 Kigali - Rwanda +250 788 524189 / + 250 788 404138 info@hope-mag.com www.hope-mag.com COPYRIGHT 2013 Reserved by Hope Magazine, a monthly Magazine is published by Hope Magazine

KEEP SCORING Rwanda’s performance in the 2016 Rwanda Governance Scorecard (RGS) has got so much to tell of the steady and consistent drive the top leadership has taken towards achieving the national development aspirations as enshrined in the Seven Year Government Plan 2010-2017. This is so much evident in the fourth edition launched recently at the Kigali Convention Centre which demonstrates that the 2016 edition has six out of eight major indicators registering higher scores with a slight decline in two compared to the 2014 edition. RGS is an annual publication seeking to gauge the state of governance in the country. It is a comprehensive governance assessment based on primary and secondary data drawn from over 200 questions. The 2016 edition findings of Governance Scorecard show that three best performer’s indicators of the RGS 2016 scored over 80% with Safety and Security leading with 92.62%, closely followed by Control of Corruption, Transparency and Accountability standing at 86.56% as well as Political Rights and Civil liberties which scored 81.83%. Other indicators recorded moderate scores: Rule of Law, 79.68%, Economic and Corporate Governance, 76.82%, Participation and Inclusiveness, 76.48%, Investing in Human and Social Development, 74.88% while the Quality of service delivery comes last with 72.93%. The scores here should be a wake-up call in those areas where performance registered moderate rates. This country’s leadership has always been a function of following a shared vision. Safety and security are imperative indicators, for example, but, at the same time, more intensification should be directed towards using that integer to attract investments—local and foreign—which, whatsoever, should be capped with quality of services delivered. There should be, if need be, a voluntary sharing of experiences from institutions that offer safety and security services with others whose lukewarm performance scales down the rate of progress Rwanda is supposed to make. Otherwise, on the whole, we are headed for the better and we should strive to keep scoring.

Rebero Daniel

magazine are not necessarily those of the editors and plublishers of Hope Magazine. ` www.hope-mag.com

Care is taken to ensure accuracy, Hope Magazine assume no liability for error or omissions in this publication. All Advertisements are taken in good faith, opinions and views contained herein are not necessarily those of the Publisher. All copyrights and trademarks are recognized. No part of this publication or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced, stored in retrieval system or transmitted in any form without written permission by Hope Magazine. An exemption is hereby granted for extracts with the purpose of fair review. © 2013

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Manifesto Review

Gender equity and civil society development to sustain communities

he government is committed to entrenching the principle of gender equality and equity in all programmes of the country, to monitor its inclusion in budget planning for all organs as well as the implementation of all laws enhancing it. During the elaboration process of the EDPRS II, the Gender Monitoring Office and other mechanisms to promote gender equity were created, and shared gender mainstreaming guidelines elaborated with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to include gender in all EDPRS II development sectors. Gender-sensitive indicators have also been updated and aligned to the Gender Statistics Framework in order to facilitate institutions with specific data to ensure that planning is more gender sensitive. These same indicators have also been shared with the private sector for guidance in planning and reporting.

The government has also ensured that Gender Budget statements are assessed annually within Central and Local Government Institutions and the findings are shared with the parliamentary budget commission during the budget hearing session. As a way of supporting women empowerment, approximately 143,289 illiterate women have been mobilized and linked to literacy centers, and 85,495 of them have already got their certificates – the current literacy rate for the people aged 15 and above is estimated at 68%, according to the 4th Population and Housing Census of 2012. And in order to ensure incorporation of gender-equality principles into the legal mechanics, a majority of parliamentarians and other parliamentary staff have been trained on gender responsive budgeting and planning, and all chief budget managers in public institutions as well as key stakeholders, especially those from MINECOFIN, are trained annually to build their capacities for GenderResponsive Budgeting.

Women Cooperatives Women have over the years been encouraged to become cooperative members, seek loans from lending agencies and to line up their activities to the market’s demands so that half of all loans from Umurenge SACCO and other microfinance institutions and banks go to women. As of March 2014, 674,327 women out of 1,711,750 SACCO applicants had accessed SACCO loans, and women made up 26.9% of the total SACCO loan share. Though the number of women who secured loans from FMIs is still low compared to men, it is important to note that there has been a steady increase over the years – by 231% in 2012 compared to the previous year, and by 27.2% in 2013. This progress is mainly due to the fact that women were trained in entrepreneurship and encouraged to work with financial institutions; Regarding women’s economic empowerment, in June 2013 the Cabinet approved the Women and Youth Access to Finance Strategy, a programme specifically aimed at

Hope Magazine-Issue 71

Manifesto Review

Mobilising nongovernmental organisations to carry out development programmes based upon the government’s development agenda has been successfully done with NGOs reducing the burden of high interest rates through investment cost subsidy to eligible women and youth entrepreneurs through a Guarantee Fund, Credit Fund and a Capacity Building Fund. Gender-based violence Building capacity of gender-based violence (GBV) committees at all administrative levels has been carried out, in which 300,000 men and women from different sectors were sensitized on GBV, labour and organic land laws.

According to statistics from police, recorded GBV cases reduced by 3.9% in 2012 to 3,444 (against 3,585 in 2011) mainly because of the increased public awareness campaigns and law enforcement. They had shot up by 4.6% in 2011, from 3,427 reported cases in 2010. By June 2014, there had been a further decline to 2,896 reported GBV cases. This reduction is the result of continuous wide spread community campaigns across the country and sensitisation through radio talk-shows and other media. A total of 21 (out of 38 planned) Isange OneStop Centres, which deal specifically with victims of GBV, have been established in health facilities. The Isange centre in Kacyiru, Kigali, close to the police headquarters, was the first of its kind in Rwanda and has become a continental model. Every year, it receives numerous foreign delegations who come to study the model. Civil Society Development Mobilising non-governmental organisations to carry out development programmes based upon the government’s development agenda has been successfully done with NGOs and other development partners operating within Joint Action Development Forums (JADF) at the District level to align their activities with the government’s programmes.

The JADF annually account for their activities through accountability days. A platform was also established to help NGOs become self-sustainable, while a new law regulating NGOs came into force. Registration of NGOs was relocated from MINALOC to the Rwanda Governance Board (RGB) which offers financial support to NGOs and other civil society organisations with viable development projects. The new law also provides for mechanisms of transparency in NGO management. RGB is entrusted with the monitoring of their activities and has helped different NGOs and faith-based organizations to overcome internal weaknesses that were hindering their missions. Furthermore, modalities were established for NGOs to enter into MoUs with the Government for delivery of services beneficial to Rwandans, and government institutions have started outsourcing certain tasks and services to local NGOs. For example, the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion (MIGEPROF) has signed contracts with local organisations to manage orphanages. In agriculture, a plan has been finalized to delegate some extension roles to local NGOs operating in the sector, while in education, the government has signed different MoUs with private education institutions to host government-funded students.

The First Lady of Rwanda, Jeanette Kagame, and of Kenya, Margaret Gakuo, visit Isange One-Stop Centre in Kacyiru in 2013.

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Manifesto Review

Abunzi hearing a case

A group of local mediator (abunzi) work together during a training session Abunzi session in Muhanga

DELIVERING JUSTICE THROUGH MEDIATION COMMITTEES

ediation Committees (Abunzi) are a Rwandan home-grown solution. In the traditional Rwanda, Abunzi were persons known within their communities for personal integrity and were asked to intervene in the event of conflict within the community.

In the reconstruction and development process after the Genocide against the Tutsis of 1994, the judicial system was substantially reformed, and among the changes was the introduction of modern-day Mediation Committees in 2004. It is a hybrid form of justice combining traditional with modern methods of conflict resolution. The idea to bring back this form of justice delivery was motivated in big part by the desire to reduce the backlog of court cases, to decentralize justice and make it more affordable and accessible for citizens seeking to resolve conflicts whilst removing the complications and cost of going to court. Today, Abunzi are fully integrated into Rwanda’s justice system, governed by the law N˚ 37/2016 of 08/09/2016 determining organisation, jurisdiction, competence and functioning of an Abunzi Committee. The Abunzi Committee exists at cell and sector level (appeal) in every District, and its members are elected by the community. Each Committee is comprised of seven members, who have to be persons of integrity in their community and who elect their 12

president and vice-president. Their role is to act as mediators, rather a judge, between parties in civil and criminal matters – although for the former, the value should not exceed three million Rwandan francs. Abunzi facts and figures There are currently a total of 2,563 Committees, of which 2,147 at the cell level and 416 at the sector level. In those committees, there are 17,941 mediators, 55.67% (9,988) of whom are men and 44.33% (7,953) women. In the 2013/14 financial year, Abunzi committees received 45,285 cases countrywide (36,940 were civil cases and 8,345 criminal ones). Of these cases, 36,441 were mediated and solved, which represents 80.5%. In 2014/2015, 40,111 cases were brought before Abunzi all over the country (30,719 civil and 9,392 criminal), of which 36,830, or 91%, were dealt with. In 2015/2016, Abunzi Committees dealt with 47,966 cases (35,953 civil and 12,013 criminal). They solved 93% of them, or 44,679 cases. Incentives Abunzi receive certain incentives from the government, most notably community health Insurance (mutuelle) for every Committee member and four of his family members. The Government has also provided mobile phones and is paying airtime charges to facilitate the Abunzi’s communication. In addition, a tender process for transport facilitation is in progress. Hope Magazine-Issue 71

EXPLOITING

Manifesto Review

NATURAL RESOURCES

FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Forestry plan was drawn up to re-afforest all suitable areas to the extent that within three years, at least 30% of the national land area will be covered with forests, and the current forest cover is 29.8%. In addition, trees were planted alongside roads and on the boundaries of lakeshores wherever possible.

Of this are, planted trees cover 684,813 ha, bamboo 4,912ha while 2,500ha of natural forest was rehabilitated. A system was introduced to protect and maintain all natural and planted forests owned by government or individuals to ensure planted trees grow to the rate of 80%, while a Forest Productivity Measurement methodology and a Forest Monitoring Information System (FMIS) have been designed and are under testing. Long-term contracts in forest management were signed with private forestry operators. Forest Master Plans for twelve Districts were updated ( Nyarugenge, Gasabo, Gatsibo, Kayonza, Nyagatare, Rwamagana, Musanze, Burera, Karongi, Ngororero, Nyabihu, Nyamasheke, Rubavu, Rusizi) and drafts made for three other ones ( Muhanga, Gicumbi, Kicukiro).

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Manifesto Review

Thanks to all these efforts, the tree survival rate increase to 90%. The government also committed itself to promoting technology and investment in wood-processing industries and so invested in an electrical pole plant for local consumption and export in April 2012 in the Nyungwe Buffer Zone under an NFC Management agreement. A timber selling point (agakiriro) has been established in every district to improve the wood value chain and accessibility, while the bamboo training centre of Masaka is upgraded to increase bamboo processing capacity in addition to two pilot kilns in Rutsiro District. The government has also provided to communities various species of plant seedlings appropriate to each region, while a National Seed Center is now managed by MINIRENA where forest seeds are being produced according to the needs. A total of 29,943,533 seedlings were produced and distributed to the communities.

Land There has been a deliberate policy of establishing and implementing national and district land-use master plans to rationally manage and use urban and rural land for its increased productivity. Among the actions undertaken in this respect, a land use portal was launched in November 2014 (www. rwandalanduse.rnra.rw), the Kigali City Master was approved and made available online (www.masterplan. kigalicity.gov.rw), 30 District land use plans were approved and LAIS2 (land administration and information system) is operational in all districts. Fighting erosion on steep slopes is also on course with 92,882 Ha of radical terraces constructed out of 165,596 ha targeted by the end of 2017, as well as 901,752 Ha of progressive terraces out of 1,054,661 ha targeted. Land registration and issuance of land titles were also expedited to enable investment in land resources. To this end, 10.6 million parcels were registered and 8,604,407 leases were issued. An interface linking existing Land Administration System and the mortgage registration system was created to provide access by all banks to the Land Administration and Information System (LAIS).

A woman shows the land title for her plot

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Manifesto Review

Muyebe I is one of four green and climate resilient villages already created

Climate change resilience and mitigation The government has increased capacities in coping with climate change, created awareness among the population on the causes and impact of climate change and implemented the national strategy on climate change and low carbon development projects. Several actions have since been taken. A National Green Growth and Climate Resiliency Strategy was approved by the Cabinet, the Green Economy was incorporated into the EDPRSII, costing of Green Growth of the Energy, Agriculture and Water sectors is underway to inform implementation requirements, and a Natural Capital Accounting and Natural Wealth Accounting framework for Rwanda is being developed with World Bank support for incorporation in the national economic planning policy. Other interventions are the review of Green Economy Indicators to ensure appropriate monitoring and evaluation of the desired results and impact; Rwf 136,443,479,674 of external funds have been mobilized of which Rwf110,981,006,415 (81%) supported green projects in the Energy and Natural Resources sector and others. To ensure proper understanding of climate change resilience, four green and climate resilient villages created (Rubaya, Muyebe I and II, and Rusizi) while four pilot projects on mushroom and bee keeping, poultry and fishing were initiated in Nyabihu District. An environment protection fund, the Environment and Climate Change Fund (FONERWA), was approved by Parliament and launched officially on 9th October 2014; it has so far mobilized Frw52 billion in

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funds from bilateral and multi-lateral agencies as well as contributions from the government. A strategic plan has been worked out for the rehabilitation of critically degraded ecosystems and watersheds, the Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) guidelines were produced, the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan was completed and a forest landscape restoration program was prepared. The Landscape Approach for Forest Restoration and Conservation worth $9.5 million was signed and implementation has started. Environment protection programmes have been integrated in all institutional development programmes while environmental mainstreaming guidelines and checklists were issued for use in different sectors. To enhance capacity for more efficient implementation, 150 Sector Ministry Planners, Provincial and District Officers were trained on checklist and guidelines for environment and climate change, as well as on Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). All sectors have complied and integrated environment and climate change in their plans and programs, while 17 higherlearning institutions were trained on Environmental Education for Sustainable development (EESD). Environmental clubs from those institutions have developed action plans and are implementing them. Besides, 27 employees from the Rwanda Education Board and the Workforce Development Agency were trained on EESD integration in the curriculum and TVET courses, and 30 districts mainstreamed environmental issues in their performance contracts.

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Hope Magazine-Issue 71

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SPECIAL FEATURE

BRALIRWA’s tale of innovating to ensure efficiency and safety

Automated asssemble line

recisely 60 years ago, in 1957, Brasseries et Limonaderies du Rwanda – better known as BRALIRWA – was created, with the construction of a brewery on the shores of Lake Kivu, in what is today Rubavu district.

This brewery which was an icon of growth, innovation and development in Rwanda’s economy remains so six decades down the lane. 60 years old however is no short time, and as such it has had its impact not only on the BRALIRWA plant but also on the brewery and beverage industry as a whole. Yet despite all the evolution in the brewery industry, some feel of the old times still remains at the brewery. A dozen of narrow flights of stairs lead to the roof of a high brick building that houses a big grain silo.

Not only does the structure represent the reality of BRALIRWA’s elevated status in the Rwandan society 60 years ago as the silo was part of the original construction, but it also offers a stunning 360° panoramic view of the present-day brewery, its surroundings and the iconic facility that it continues to be in today’s Rwanda. From the rooftop, a huge new hangar-like building is visible in all its magnificence which in a nutshell represents the evolution of the last six decades. The new building is home to the brewery’s state-of-the-art bottling unit, inaugurated in 2013. The unit consists of a fully automated assembly line where crates with empty bottles come in and filled ones go out. The entire process from one end to the other is handled by machines, and it takes only a handful of people to monitor the process on computer screens at each of the Hope Magazine-Issue 71

SPECIAL FEATURE

sections, to intervene to solve a problem when required, or to prepare the chain for a new brand of beer or size of bottle – as the plant bottles all of BRALIRWA’s beers: the people’s favourite Primus, Mutzig, Turbo King, Legend and the most recent addition to the beer portfolio, Huza. “This is the newest technology, which you even won’t find in many breweries in Europe,” explains Richard Jada, the brewing manager at the plant, adding that the plant can process up to 40,000 bottles per hour. It all starts with crates rolling in with empty bottles, which are then removed by a machine that directs them into the cleaning section. Next they are refilled, capped and labelled, to roll on to the last section of the assembly line where an impressively looking robot puts the filled bottles in clean crates, four crates at a time. Elimination of human error While seeing this assembly line at work is in itself awe-inspiring, it is actually the less obvious aspects of the automation that make the biggest difference in efficiency. For instance, since there is now minimal human involvement in the actual operations of the bottling process, human errors are as good as eliminated. From the volume of water used in cleaning, the measure of beer needed to fill a bottle to the careful placing of bottles in crates, there is no wastefulness and much less chance of broken bottles. Furthermore, at the end of every section of the assembly line there are automated checks to remove any bottle that does not meet BRALIRWA’s stringent quality standards.

Automated valves Another part of the brewery that is hard to miss from the rooftop of the old silo are the huge fermentation vats that tower over all the other buildings. They, too, are the perfect illustration of how much has changed at the Rubavu plant in the past 60 years – and even more so in the past two decades. The eight vats, in which beer ferments for about two weeks, each have a capacity of 5,000 hectolitres (500,000 litres), and were only recently constructed. They are an indicator of the increasing demand for BRALIRWA’s beers as they dwarf the brewery’s second biggest fermentation vats, which have a capacity of only 750 hl. But even among the big vats, evolution is visible. While to the untrained eye the two rows of four vats each look identical, the brewery’s manager, Filip Gheeraert, points out a subtle difference in the valves – in the first row of vats, there are handles to operate them, while in the second (the latest addition built in 2015) those are absent, and the valves are controlled via computer. It may not look as spectacular as the bottling plant, but for the highly-skilled brewery workers it once again ensures more efficiency. Thus, through continued investment, BRALIRWA forges ahead in its quest to make its operations more efficient, and safe, both in the brewery in Rubavu and the soft-drinks plant in Kigali with one objective – to ensure that the quality of its beverages remains uncompromised at all time.

And not only is the actual bottling process automated, maintenance is too. For instance, in the past the assembly line would often literally grind to a halt due to improper lubrication of the machines, which not only halted production for a significant time, but also resulted in a good number of broken bottles. Today, oil is dispensed automatically, at the right intervals and in the right quantity, to ensure the optimal functioning of the assembly line. In the same manner, cleaning of the equipment is also mostly automated. All this means that there are much less occasions when people actually have to interfere with the machines. And in case there is a need for an operator to manually make an adjustment, an ingenious Lock Out Tag Out (LOTO) system ensures that the assembly line cannot run unless all the access point doors are properly closed.

The newest fermentation vats contain 500,000 hectolitres of beer

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The bottling plant can handle up to 40,000 bottles per hour

This robot fills 3 crates at a time with bottles

Hope Magazine-Issue 71

How Business Partners International’s funding helps SMEs grow Jean Claude Mutajogire, the BPI Country Manager

ince 2011, Business Partners International (BPI), a Rwandan investment fund, has been providing a wide range of financing services to mostly small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to boost their growth.

BPI supports SME growth by providing financing, specialist sector knowledge and value-added services to viable SMEs, hence tackling one of their biggest challenges today, which is access to finance. It started with an $8 million fund that was used to invest in more than 40 Rwandan businesses, many of them owned by youth and women, who normally own few assets and can therefore not offer the security required for a loan. Many of these establishments have managed to grow significantly thanks to the support. Currently, a fund of $30 million is available for the East African region, which will offer even more opportunities for investment in the future. Hope Magazine talked to Jean Claude Mutajogire, the BPI Country Manager, about the fund’s impact on Rwandan businesses. How have you tackled some of the financing challenges SMEs faced in the past? We don’t have the same requirements concerning owner’s capital or securities that many other financiers do – capital or security are not necessarily required for an application to be accepted. The Business Partners model of financing focuses on a project’s viability. This has been crucial to removing the barrier of access to finance for viable businesses which were lacking sufficient collateral or money to secure loans from traditional lenders such as banks, in a market where most loans are collateral-based. When a business applies to us for financing, its proposal is assessed on its viability, which consists of two important elements: the entrepreneur (integrity, drive, vision, appropriate experience) and the actual business. What kind of financing can SMEs get from BPI? We offer both business and commercial property finance to viable businesses seeking investment of between US$ 50,000 and US$ 1,000,000. We structure unique, individualized financing solutions using term loans, equity and royalties or any combination of these. We offer maximum flexibility to suit specific needs.

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As part of an integrated solution, we also provide Technical Assistance (TA). The TA or mentorship programme provides value-added services for the business owner including accounting support, problem solving, marketing plans, turnaround solutions, staff training, acquiring management information systems, automation of production processes, complying with product standard (such as ISO certification),etc. Customers can access to up to 30% of the main investment in form of an interest-free financing to cater for the above-mentioned soft issues in the business. Do you prioritize any particular economic sectors? Applications are considered in all economic sectors with the exception of onlending activities, direct farming operations, underground mining and nonprofit organizations. We focus on financing sectors that have an impact on the economy. We may list among others projects that generate employment and those that reduce imports and or increase exports. How do you ensure the proper use of your loans by the beneficiaries? Our due diligence process is thorough, tried and tested, and provides insight into the extent of inherent risk in each transaction. If we find that the beneficiary would require assistance in handling the funds, our technical assistance program will help the business develop the required systems and provide appropriate training to staff. Is there anything else you would like to tell our SME readers? Business Partners International exists to fulfil the needs and requirements of entrepreneurs, exclusively in the SME sector. We are passionate about entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial development. We invest in you and stand beside you. Our talent lies in our ability to unearth entrepreneurs and help them transform their lives, as well as the lives of all those they touch through their entrepreneurial endeavours. Our strength lies in our ability to tailor-make our service offerings to suit each entrepreneur’s unique needs, thus becoming the best business partner you’ve ever had.

AIRTEL RWANDA LAUNCHES CALL CAMPAIGN DUBBED

“TERA STORI”

igali, Rwanda. January, 2017. In an effort This is the first of its kind in Rwanda where customers get to enjoy to enhance loyalty and to continue to give free calling without any form of subscription and getting to enjoy its customers affordable rates, services and surfing for the whole day. value for their money, Airtel Rwanda today Commenting on the initiative, Airtel Rwanda Marketing launched a new plan Director, Moses Abindabizemu said, “The new plan is the that offers unlimited first of its kind in the Rwandan telecom market. Opening calls. The new plan comes along up the voice and data market is our way of ensuring our with free data where customers customers have no limitations to what our network has to enjoy free browsing on social offer. As technology evolves by the day the need for data media sites like Facebook, Twitter increases – which is why we opt to give our customers a and Whatsapp until midnight. reason to enjoy free surfing by just making a call. Under the same plan Airtel subscribers will be able to call To enjoy the free unlimited calls, all networks at only 30Rwf per minute, the lowest rate on Airtel customers calling on Airtel the market. to Airtel will only pay 30RwF for the first minute and the rest of the call will be free up to 61 minutes – then you get free data to browse Whatsapp, Facebook and Twitter after their first call. Under the same plan, after the third call, customers will call for free for the whole day from to any Airtel subscriber.

“Not only is the plan focusing on Airtel to Airtel calls but also making calls to other networks will be 30Rwf per minute from 38Rwf as previously was”, added Moses. All Airtel subscribers will need to only load airtime and call for free after the first minute and get free data. For more information and inquiries, follow our Airtel Rwanda Facebook

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The Manor Hotel’s new chef brings a taste of Italy to Rwanda

Kigali’s supreme dining place The Manor Hotel has joined hands with a very experienced Italian chef to give its patrons a genuine taste of the Italy’s cuisine. 50-year-old Francesco Caricato has over 25 years of experience having worked all over Europe as well as in Thailand, South America, Tanzania and South Africa. His specialty is obviously preparing his home country’s signature dishes of pasta and pizza, which he notes are foods that are full of energy, but he’s also very good at other international dishes. “Coming to the Manor Hotel has been great – I loved the opportunity and my boss is a really good person who gave me the go-ahead of doing what I like doing,” he said in an interview with the Hope Magazine last month. “We are adjusting the menu

to offer more tasty Italian dishes, unlike what you find in Kigali today.” And Caricato hasn’t for a minute regretted coming to Rwanda. “Since I set foot in Rwanda, I fell in love with the place. It’s very peaceful and the people are very welcoming,” he said. What is a challenge though, he noted, is that many ingredients for Italian dishes aren’t found here, although he does his best to use as many local ingredients as possible. “The flour here is very good for making pizza, and the beef is great for pasta dishes,” he noted. Meanwhile, Caricato is also training Rwandan chefs at The Manor, and they are very excited to learn how to make Italian food. So for the real Italian experience, The Manor Hotel is now the place to be.

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SPECIAL FEATURE

Rwanda Governance Scorecard 2016 shows steady improvement in development

wanda has registered consistent improvement in different governance and development sectors, according to the Rwanda Governance Scorecard (RGS) 2016, which was presented last month. Compared to the 2014 edition, six out of eight major indicators recorded higher scores while only two presented a slight decline. RGS is a scientifically designed national governance index used to measure and evaluate the state of governance in Rwanda. Introduced in 2010, it is crafted around eight indicators. They include rule of law, political rights and civil liberties, participation and inclusiveness, safety and security, investments in human and social development, corruption, transparency and accountability, and quality service delivery. These indicators are developed and consolidated on a three-tier setting: international framework, international

indices and Rwanda-specific indicators. It is a publication assessing the state of governance in the country. It is a comprehensive governance evaluation based on primary and secondary data drawn from over 200 questions. While launching the 2016 RGS, Prime Minister Anastase Murekezi said it has become a scientific portrait of the country’s governance performance. “RGS is a unique assessment tool based on locally generated data like citizen satisfaction surveys. It helps us to understand the Rwandan 2016 state of governance and what we need to do to achieve more good results,” the Premier said. The findings of last year’s Governance Scorecard show that three best performing indicators of the RGS2016 scored over 80% with Safety and Security leading with 92.62%, followed by Control of Corruption, Transparency and Accountability at 86.56% and Political Rights and Civil liberties which

scored 81.83%. Other indicators recorded moderate scores: Rule of Law, 79.68%, Economic and Corporate Governance, 76.82%, Participation and Inclusiveness, 76.48%, Investing in Human and Social Development, 74.88% while the Quality of Service Delivery came last with 72.93%. The publication indicated that out of eight indicators, three (37.5%) scored green and five (62.5%) scored yellow. In comparison with the previous edition, there is a slight decrease in performance of indicators because the RGS 2014 had six indicators in green while two were in yellow. The CEO of the Rwanda Governance Board, Professor Anastase Shyaka, said that RGS 2016 clearly shows that Rwanda is making commendable strides towards building and sustaining a social developmental democratic state. “By using universally recognized indicators of governance and credible selected sources of data, RGS has emerged as an evidencebased tool of governance that drives policy

Different government officials and expats led by the Prime Minister, Hon Anastase Murekezi and the United Nations Resident Representative, Lamin Manneh (centre)

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SPECIAL FEATURE

UN’s Lamin Manneh makes his remarks during the launch of the Rwanda Governance Scorecard

and social reforms in Rwanda by identifying challenges and providing actionable recommendations,” Shyaka said. Raising the bar He pointed out this can be attributed to the slight adjustment in scoring methods: in the RGS 2016, indicators start to score green from 80% up from 75% in the 2014. “The bar has been raised for the RGS 2016 compared to the previous editions,” he said. Color rankings are attributed to the performance of indicators as follows: green is 80% and upwards; yellow from 60% to 79.9%; amber from 40% to 59.9% and red from 0% to 39.9%. The change is explained by the increasing expectation of indicators’ performance. Regarding the least performing indicators, Shyaka said: “There’s a need for these areas to be looked into and strategies drafted to improve their performance.” And concerning the good performance of Security and Safety, Prime Minister Murekezi pointed out that it was the confirmation of earlier surveys. “Indeed, this score is not different from the 2015 Gallup Global Law and Order Report that named Rwanda (with 85%) among the few countries in the world where people feel safe walking home alone at night,” he said. “This means that our security organs are doing a great job.”

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From left to right- RGB CEO, Prof. Anastase Shyaka, the prime minister, Hon. Anastase Murekezi and the UN’s resident representative, Lamin Manneh at the launch

On the second best performing indicator – control of corruption and accountability, which scored 86.56% – the Premier said the performance also reflects the recent rating in the Corruption Perception Index, which was released last month by Transparency International, which ranked Rwanda third least corrupt country in Africa. Going forward For the remaining five indicators – rule of law, participation and inclusiveness, economic and corporate governance, investing in human and social development, and quality service delivery – which didn’t perform well compared to the others, Murekezi said that the concerned institutions should focus on the required improvements. Quality service delivery, at 72.93%, remains the least performing indicator for the fourth time in a row. “As you are aware, last year’s National Dialogue Council (Umushyikirano) resolved that concrete steps must be taken in the public and private sector to pave the way for drastic improvements,” Murekezi said. “We can’t afford to tolerate a culture of poor service delivery as we aim to be a modern, service-based economy.” The premier said the Government will “double its efforts” in ensuring that services in the social and economic sectors are properly delivered, since the socio-economic

transformation of the country as highlighted in Vision 2020 relies heavily on a strong service sector. “I therefore urge all institutions, public and private, as well as civil society and all Rwandans, to consider service delivery as a top priority,” Murekezi said. He also observed that to improve service delivery, a change of individual mindsets is required. He also recognized the One-UN for its continued collaboration with the Government to further promote good governance for the citizens. The United Nations Resident Coordinator, Lamin M. Manneh, noted that RGS has, through rigorous research and empirical analysis underpinning advocacy work and policy making, undoubtedly established a proven track record in advancing good governance in Rwanda. According to police spokesperson Theos Badege, the success of the safety and security indicator (a sector that involves the police and the army) is due to two strong pillars: good leadership and discipline spearheaded by committed forces, and collaboration by the public. “Of course, we know we are not where we want to be, but we will keep improving to be the best we can,” Badege said.

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Passion for Quality Enjoyment for Life Respect for People, Society and Environment

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THEY BELIEVED THEY COULD SO THEY DID! STRONG WOMEN OF RWANDA

There is a group of women in Rwanda who now realize that there is no limit to how strong, fit and amazing one can be: they are the Warrior Women. This group consisting of more than 25 Rwandan and expat women believe that to sweat is to grow physically and mentally. Throughout their lives, these women have been repeatedly told by society, friends, family and colleagues that they were not good enough. However, one day, each of them decided to believe in their own ambitions, passions and goals. Luckily, WAKA Fitness just happened to be the first step in a long journey of self-acceptance.

#REALSTRENGTH

#BRINGITON

The decision to join WAKA wasn’t a conscious choice to prove everyone wrong. But, during intense physical training 3-4 times a week, they found a support network of women who were all experiencing and thinking the same things. Why aren’t I smaller, prettier, more successful? Will I ever be good enough? Just who am I, really? The incredible thing about pushing yourself physically is that you always end up pushing yourself mentally as well. Fortunately, most of the Warrior Women found that they had someone to help them get one more push-up or listen to why they were frustrated at work. Some of them had similar goals and some didn’t. That didn’t matter. What mattered is that they all cared about helping each other succeed. The most important thing the Warrior Women discovered as a team is that when there are no limits, no restrictions, we’re honest with ourselves and each other, we encourage, we discuss, we sweat, we shout, we get light headed, we laugh, we dance, we dream and we act on our ambitions. 38

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Importantly, not only were many of the Warrior Women able to achieve some of the health and fitness goals they had been working on few years, they also managed to do what only professional athletes can do. They followed a 12-week intense workout regime and advanced diet, and pushed themselves harder than ever. They proved that they were true leaders, that they were in control of their decisions and priorities and that they could and would follow through on even the most difficult challenges. In total, the team lost more than 100 kg in 12 weeks, they got fitter, stronger and even more ambitious about their future goals.

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This is 2017! Strong women are the new cool! You’re not just strong for a girl… You’re just strong! As simple as that. So if you are out there wondering if you have what it takes to be a Warrior Women, don’t doubt yourself, you do!

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To learn more about the WAKA Warrior team please visit WAKA Fitness in Kimihurura, or visit: www.wakafitness.com or follow us on www.facebook.com/wakafitnessafrica If you want more inspiring stories please follow Pearl from the team and her blog on how she has transformed her life and inspired others to do the same: getfitstayfitweb.wordpress.com

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SPECIAL FEATURE

EMBRACING CASHLESS PAYMENTS CUSTOMERS’ CONVENIENCE

here is nothing more convenient than being able to pay for goods and services without having to use cash these days. That was also the experience for Joel Safari who,

while driving his taxi on a recent night, realised he had run out fuel and had no cash on him. He started despairing when suddenly he remembered he could use his Visa card to fuel up at any Engen station. Since its entry into the Rwandan market in 2008, Engen Rwanda, the country’s leading retailer of petroleum products, has been embracing cashless payment methods in a bid to offer its customers ever more convenient services.

Starting with its Engen 1-card that was launched in 2010, its customers have always been offered alternatives to cash payments. Through the 1-card, a customer is also able to monitor their fleet consumption with kilometres reading, tag identification and online reports. Thus, the 1-card service offers customers the liberty and unprecedented possibility to oversee their fleet’s consumption from a distance. Following the 1-card, Engen went on to partner with most commercial banks that issue Visa cards to their clients to allow motorists pay for fuel, lubricants and other services at all Engen service stations in the country. “We are delighted with this achievement which is in line with our brand promise to always keep our customers at the top of our priorities. The Visa card payment option

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SPECIAL FEATURE

is one strong way of ensuring that we deliver on this promise,” said Sarah Doukoure, the Director General of Engen Rwanda, in an interview in 2015 shortly after the launch of the Visa payment option. Since mid-April 2015, all Engen petrol stations have been installed with Point-of-Sale (POS) devices to accept Visa card payments. “Having completed this step, we can now confidently tell all drivers in Rwanda that there is no reason for carrying cash to fuel up at Engen. At any time of day or night, you can come and pay with your Visa card. There is no minimum amount required,” Doukoure explained. And customers like Safari testify that being able to pay with Visa at Engen petrol stations is much quicker and more convenient. “It didn’t expect this to be possible in Rwanda –being able to fill your tank and just give your card to make the payment, it’s so quick,” a thrilled customer said.

“We believe that this partnership with Engen will increase efficiency and add value to our customers’ lives through the ease, and convenience of MTN Mobile Money,” said MTN’s General Manager of Human Resources and Corporate Affairs, Mary Asiimwe, at the launch event last year. Since the introduction of MTN Mobile Money in Rwanda in 2010, the strong uptake of the service has demonstrated the high demand for easy-to-use, safe, and affordable payment options. By December 1st 2016, the company had recorded over 1 million active subscribers on its mobile payment platform. And Engen has been quick to take note of the evolution, and make the option available to its customers.

Perhaps the confidence of Engen Rwanda’s management to spearhead cashless payments is based on the efforts of the government to enable the cashless economy. Today, anyone with bank account can request a Visa card from his bank, and more and more businesses, just like Engen, accept the cards for payment.

“It’s all about delivering the best forecourt experience. This partnership between MTN and ENGEN is an important step in achieving a complete cashless environment at our petrol stations increasing convenience and safety for our customers,” said Doukoure at the launch at the Engen Kicukiro Station. As a retailer of fuel, one of the most common and most consumed commodities, Engen’s move to make cashless payments possible is good news for Rwanda’s dream of a cashless economy.

Mobile platforms But Engen hasn’t left it at that. Last year, the fuel marketer partnered with telecom companies MTN and Tigo to facilitate mobile payment platforms at its stations. Starting with MTN Rwanda’s rollout, Engen customers can now purchase fuel, lubricants and other services using MTN Mobile Money.

About Engen Rwanda ENGEN Rwanda, commenced operations in Rwanda in November 2008 acquiring the assets of TOTAL and thus becoming a leading producer and marketer of a wide range of fuels, lubricants and oil-based products in the country. It currently operates 21 service stations in Rwanda and operates across 18 African markets.

A motorist pays for fuel at the Kicukiro Engen station as the fuel marketer’s MD, Sarah Doukoure looks on

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Manifesto Review

STRENGTHENING HEALTH SERVICES FOR ALL

he Health Sector continued to implement actions meant to improve the availability, accessibility and utilization of maternal and child health services; the quality of services offered by public and private health facilities; geographical and financial accessibility of health services; the reduction of the burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases on the population; as well as ensuring the universal availability and accessibility of drugs and consumables. Environmental health The Ministry of Health launched the Community-Based Environmental Health Promotion Programme (CBEHPP) in 2009 to eliminate hygiene-related diseases, given that the ten leading causes of morbidity and mortality are infectious diseases and that over 90% of consultations at the rural health facilities include malaria, acute respiratory tract infections, diarrhea, skin diseases, HIV/AIDS, STIs, tuberculosis, typhus, cholera, meningitis and intestinal parasites. The CBEHPP is organized at the village level focusing on facilitating households to assess and change their hygiene. Residents are organized in Hygiene Clubs at the Umudugudu level, bringing together between 50 and 100 households to identify health and hygiene problems in their communities and find solutions to them. The CBEHPP intervention point provides hygiene-related support to communities to guarantee behaviour change and attain sustainable hygiene. One of the ideals of Vision 2020 is to have households that will have mastered and be practicing hygiene and waste disposal. Malaria and other parasitic diseases prevention Different activities were achieved in terms of vector surveillance which include vector bionomics, vector resistance to insecticide and bioassays for quality control and status of residual efficacy of indoor residual spraying campaigns and long lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs). 44

To ensure malaria prevention, Rwanda is committed to maintain the universal coverage of LLINs using a joint strategy of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Rwanda Biomedical Centre which is the distribution of mosquito nets to pregnant women and children under one year through the antenatal care services and the extended program on immunization at health centre level. On a monthly basis, LLINs are distributed and reported through the Health Management Information System (HMIS). HIV and Other Blood Born Infections The country is implementing HIV-prevention programmes focusing on key drivers of the epidemic. As of late June 2015, 553 sites offered voluntary counselling and testing services, 521 provide antiretroviral treatment (ART) and 517 prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV services. As a result, over 3 million tests were done with only 0.8% testing positive. Since July 2014, Rwanda started to implement the new WHO guidelines for ART, and the total number of patients receiving the treatment increased from 133,574 (June 2014) to 153,062 (June 2015). Mentorship and task-shifting programs were very key strategies to improve quality of service delivery. Rwanda continued to implement strategies to eliminate of motherto-child HIV transmission with a target to keep the new child HIV infections below 2%. By June 2014, the mother-to-child transmission was estimated at 1.83%. Tuberculosis and Other Respiratory Diseases Division 48, 4% of all patients with symptoms of tuberculosis (presumptive TB cases) were brought in by Community Health Workers (CHWs) for screening. This move has greatly contributed to easy and rapid access to TB health facilities; 5,833 cases of TB (all types) were reported, including 4233 cases Hope Magazine-Issue 71

Manifesto Review

that were bacteriologically confirmed (new and relapse). This confirms the previously observed trend of decreasing TB notification. Efforts were made to find more TB cases in high-risk groups, among others prisoners where 303 TB cases of all forms were notified using actively tracing cases by mobile chest x-ray. Maternal and child health programs In order to support and maintain the existing workforce and improve neonatal care, 80 health care providers from district hospitals have been trained in emergency new-born care through the Helping Babies Breathe Initiative, and they were provided with newborn care training equipment that will serve as training aids for training others in their respective hospitals and health centres.

Health care providers from district hospitals have been trained in emergency new-born care.

In acknowledging the need for a systematic approach to audit and review of perinatal deaths in Rwanda, health care providers have been trained in conducting stillbirth audits which are currently being conducted in all district hospitals and reported through the HMIS. In addition to existing child and newborn death audits which started in 2012, Maternal Death Surveillance and Response (MDSR) tools have been developed, and health care providers have been trained in their use. MDSR are currently conducted in all district hospitals as part of the integrated plan to eliminate preventable maternal deaths. In order to ensure health services to particularly vulnerable and hard-to-reach communities and children, Mother and Child Health Weeks have been conducted twice. Nearly 5 million were reached by the campaign and they benefited from valuable interventions such as immunization of children between 0 and 15 months of age, de-worming of children of 1 to 15 years of age, distribution of vitamin A supplements for all children under five and breastfeeding mothers and human papilloma virus (cervical cancer) vaccination for eligible girls. The campaigns also focused on family planning sensitization to men and women of reproductive age as well as social mobilization and advocacy to promote hand washing, malaria prevention and correct use of mosquito nets, the importance of antenatal care and community health issuance. www.hope-mag.com

campaigns on hygiene have been held in schools

On a monthly basis, long lasting insecticidal nets are distributed

To reinforce the capacity of health care providers in permanent contraceptive methods, and to bring services closer to the population, two providers from each district hospital have been trained in tubal ligation and vasectomy.

Non communicable diseases Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are an emerging problem in Rwanda. NCDs include cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, cancer, injuries, disabilities, oral health, ear, nose and throat, and eye diseases.

In the fight against gender-based violence, 61 health service providers have been trained on team work, collecting GBV evidence and confidentiality in keeping records of GBV victims. To improve the nutritional status of mothers and children, a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;1000 daysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; campaign has been sustained and supported throughout the country to strengthen the efforts to eliminate malnutrition among children under the age of two, and among pregnant and lactating mothers. The national nutrition screening campaigns have been conducted and 81.2 % of the targeted under-five have been reached.

The majority of NCDs are preventable through a broad range of simple, cost-effective public health interventions that target the various NCD risk factors. Currently 97% of public health facilities have at least 2 healthcare providers trained in the prevention and management of NCDs, in accordance with national guidelines. 1047 health care providers were trained in the prevention and management of NCDs including screening, education, and follow up of some NCDs namely hypertension, diabetes, heart failure, chronic kidney and chronic respiratory diseases. 45

SAFINTRA RWANDA LIMITED wish to inform all customers that we have shifted our factory and sales office to Plot 2156 & 2157, Prime Economic Zone, Masoro, effective 01/12/2016 SAFINTRA RWANDA LIMITED Iramenyesha Abakiriya bayo bose ko yimukiye Imasoro muri Free Zone kuva itariki 01/12/2016 mu kibanza no. 2156 & 2157. Ubucuruzi bwose niho buzajya bukorerwa.

Safintra Rwanda Limited Plot 2156 & 2157, Prime Economic Zone, Phase 1, Masoro, Gasabo Dist. P.O. Box 6959, Kigali-Rwanda. Tel: +250 727 888070, +250 788 317072 Email: sales.safintrarwanda@safalgroup.com Web: www.safintra-rwanda.com 46

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