Technical Advances, but Insufficient Fair Trial Guarantees
The Rwandan government has made notable progress in reforming its judicial system since 2004, but fair trial is still not assured, said Human Rights Watch in a new report released today....
from African Business An article on a revolution happening in Rwanda. and how it help lift the poor. - KaleQueen's Internet Cafe, in the impoverished Kigali suburb of Nyamirambo, is teeming with children throughout most of the day. "Most of these kids are street children," says the owner, Pacifique Bayongwa. "I feel bad about letting them in, since I know they must be paying me with money stolen from their parents. But at least they're learning something useful."The children at Queen's come mostly for the online games. "They stay here for hours each day, and after a few weeks they become really proficient with a computer," says Bayongwa. In the evenings, Bayongwa and his assistants hold courses for adults to teach them basic programming skills. The next stage, he says, is to make sure...
from the Delaware Online By STEPHEN KINZERIn the dozens of poor countries I've covered as a foreign correspondent, development specialists -- people who run projects aimed at pulling nations out of poverty -- have generally worked hand in hand with human-rights advocates. That makes sense because these two groups are natural allies. Both instinctively support governments that promote freedom and prosperity, and oppose corrupt and repressive ones.Recently, though, I've been spending time in a country where these two groups are on opposite sides: Rwanda.No other country's government is so highly praised by development specialists but so roundly condemned by human-rights advocates. In fact, Rwanda's spectacular rebirth since the shocking genocide of 1994 has reignited an old debate about...
from All Africa The Monitor (Kampala)NEWS24 June 2008Posted to the web 24 June 2008The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved about $1.8m for a poverty reduction facility in Rwanda. This money is usually released after the review of a country's performance under a three-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) arrangement.The PRGF is IMF's concessional facility for low-income countries. It is intended that PRGF-supported programs are based on country-owned poverty reduction strategies adopted in a participatory process involving development partners.In Rwanda the IMF has just completed its fourth review.A statement released from the IMF recently said the IMF executive board granted a waiver for the non-observance of a performance criterion on net credit to the...
from the Los Angeles Times There's a new promise of prosperity. So why are human rights advocates unhappy?By Stephen KinzerJune 22, 2008In the dozens of poor countries I've covered as a foreign correspondent, development specialists -- people who run projects aimed at pulling nations out of poverty -- have generally worked hand in hand with human rights advocates. That makes sense because these two groups are natural allies. Both instinctively support governments that promote freedom and prosperity and oppose corrupt and repressive ones.Recently, though, I've been spending time in a country where these two groups are on opposite sides: Rwanda. No other country's government is so highly praised by development specialists but also so roundly condemned by human rights advocates. In fact,...
Armed Conflict and Schooling: Long-term Evidence from Cambodia and Rwanda (World Bank, May 2008) [text]
Building a Europe of Asylum: UNHCR's Recommendations to France for its European Union Presidency (UNHCR, June 2008) [text]
Critical Review Instead of Complacency: Amnesty International's Ten-Point Human Rights Programme for the French Presidency of the European Union
Iraq - Rhetoric and...
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Rwanda
from All Africa The New Times (Kigali)By Rwembeho StephenKigaliOne of the critical issues facing policy makers in sub-Saharan Africa and Rwanda in particular is realising economic development in rural areas.Africa is the world's second largest continent after Asia. It has a total surface area of 30.3 million km2, including several islands, and an estimated total population of 888 million (2005, UN). The vast Sahara Desert, divides Northern Africa from Sub-Saharan Africa.Poverty in Africa is predominantly rural. More than 70 per cent of the continent's poor people live in rural areas and depend on agriculture for food and livelihood, yet agricultural development is not at its best. In Sub-Saharan Africa, a big number of people live in extreme poverty.Among them are rural poor people in...
from All AfricaThe New Times (Kigali)By Gloria AnyangoKigaliConcerns about poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa are not new and poverty reduction efforts have been the prime agenda of many developing countries.The consequences of poverty often reinforce its complex causes, exacerbating the problem.That is why poverty remains a big issue in countries north of river Limpopo and south of the Sahara. Poverty is not likely to be reduced in Sub-Saharan Africa without considerable improvement in government commitment and ownership of programs to support this goal.Unfortunately, only a few Sub-Saharan African governments have explicitly identified poverty reduction as an important policy objective in their programs with Bank.Rwanda however happens to be among countries that have clearly come up with...
A few weeks ago I had a pleasure of attending a workshop for journalists from East Africa organized by IREN - a Kenyan free market think tank. Such events are usually held in Kenya, but due to the violence in the country journalists from Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, and Kenya gathered in Tanzania this time around.
The workshop focused primarily on the role of journalists in spurring development in Africa - whether its democratic reforms, addressing poverty, or dealing with policy issues. Although nearly 30 participants did not always agree with each other (I did enjoy the debates) - they all had one thing on common: their commitment to highlighting Africa’s problems, figuring out domestic solutions, making democracy work, and staying true to their...
from All AfricaFocus Media (Kigali)By Ann Christine Ishimwe"One of the ways to make the world a better place is for people to become committed to voluntarily help each other." That is the message which two inspired young men, Baker Gasatura and Medin Matsiko, want to spread, especially since they see that the spirit of volunteerism is still lacking in Rwanda.They have created an organization to change that attitude, and dynamic as they are, they want to turn it into a global movement.Global Trustees for Unity and Peace Volunteers (GTUPV) is an NGO that was set up in Rwanda on January 14, 2007 by Baker Gasatura and six other energetic youth. Gasatura, who is the current president of the organization, says the initiative was born when the founders realized that the youth worldwide should...
from Reuters Africa KIGALI (Reuters) - The World Bank has approved a $70 million grant to help Rwanda finance poverty reduction programmes under a new five-year growth strategy, the bank said on Friday.In 2007, Rwanda launched an Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy (EDPRS) that it hopes to implement between 2008 and 2012.The programme sets guidelines for a move towards a middle income state by training its human resource, transforming the agricultural sector, investing in infrastructure and widening its export base.Fourteen years after Rwanda's genocide of 800,000 people, the country remains one of the world's poorest with more than half of its population living on less than a dollar per day.The $70 million grant is the fourth in a series linked to Rwanda's poverty...
Climate Change, Environmental Degradation and Migration: Addressing Vulnerabilities and Harnessing Opportunities - Background Paper (IOM & Greek Chairmanship of the Human Security Network, Feb. 2008) [text]
Getting it Done and Doing it Right: A Global Study on the United Nations-led Monitoring & Reporting Mechanism on Children and Armed Conflict (Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict, Jan....
from All AfricaThe New Times (Kigali)By Florence MutesiKigaliA development consultant has said that barriers to education access, healthcare, water and markets are frustrating the fight against poverty."To get the poor out of poverty, we must work on development barriers first," Stephen Anderson, a consultant with 'Vision 2020 Umurenge' project, said this week.Anderson was speaking to representatives of the poorest sectors in each district, directors of planning in ministries and representatives of NGOs, during a technical validation meeting at Alpha Palace Hotel on Tuesday.The 'Vision 2020 Umurenge', a sub-set of the broader Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy (EDPRS), aims to develop the poorest sectors in all districts. Its pilot phase has three components; public...
Correct Injustice Against Ex-Presidential Candidate and Surgeon
Officials of the Rwandan popular justice system known as gacaca should immediately review a recent judicial decision that found the surgeon and former presidential candidate Dr. Theoneste Niyitegeka guilty of complicity in genocide, Human Rights Watch said today....
The 1994 genocide in Rwanda horrified the world with its extreme brutality. However, in the intervening years, media coverage of the country has decreased dramatically, and Rwanda’s situation has faded from the attention of the international community. Most people outside of the country, therefore, are largely unaware of the immense social, political, and economic challenges still facing Rwanda.
In his Feature Service article, Pie-Pacifique Kabalira-Uwase, a Rwandan living in exile in South Africa and an honorable mention winner in CIPE’s youth essay competition, describes how history is being re-written in the country and the government’s policies to de-ethnicize Rwanda are actually doing the opposite. Especially for young people, this widespread propagation of revisionist...
from All AfricaNew Times (Kigali)By Florence Mutesi and John GahamanyiKigaliAcross the entire continent, Africans face debilitating poverty. A number of strategies have been put forward to address the problem, mostly involving large amounts of foreign aid.However, many today look to African governments themselves to contribute to the effort by decentralizing, in hopes that decentralization will reduce government spending and increase revenue generation.Decentralization is demanded of African governments not only to meet International Monitory Fund (IMF) and World Bank requirements for aid, but also to help the countries develop.World Bank official Sylvie Debomy agrees with this view but believes that the major challenge is to make cities function better, thereby creating an enabling...
from All AfricaNew Times (Kigali)NEWSBy Joseph KamugishaKigaliAs the Rwandan economy registers significant growth mainly in the subsistence agriculture sector, more efforts need to be invested in the modernisation of agriculture.Over 90 per cent of the people in the country practice agriculture and this shows that their standard of living can be improved if the agriculture sector is modernized to have a high income among the people.For several years, the government of Rwanda has been sensitizing the people about their agriculture activities, to change from subsistence farming to modern farming that meets the high demand of agriculture products in the foreign market. The government is also embarking on the policy of agricultural commercial farming that has seen the rise of the production...
Judges Fail to Account for Defense Evidence and Previous Court Error
An appeals court has upheld the 19-year prison sentence of a Rwandan human rights activist on genocide-related charges, failing to address the errors of a lower court judgment that violated Rwandan law and fair trial standards, Human Rights Watch said today....
from All AfricaNew Times (Kigali)NEWS17 August 2007Posted to the web 17 August 2007By Frank NamaraKigaliAfrican Development Bank (ADB) experts are training Rwandans on ways to fight poverty among households. ADB is an institution fostering economic growth and social progress in Africa.Its goal is to reduce poverty and improve living standards. The training comes at backdrop a recent UN National Human Development Report on Rwanda recommended that achieving Millennium Development Goals partly requires to break with the "business as usual" approach to development assistance. Meaning more effort and resources must be invested in the fight against poverty. ADB experts believe involving stakeholders in development initiatives and decision making is one of the ways the people will own the...
Confer Due Process Rights to Arrested Generals
Rwandan judicial and police authorities should account promptly for the whereabouts of Assinapol Rwigara, a prominent businessman, and should assure due process rights to arrested generals Frank Rusagara and Sam Kanyemera, Human Rights Watch said today....
from All AfricaUN Integrated Regional Information NetworksNEWSKigaliRwanda has progressed in education, gender equality and democratic governance, but a concentration of wealth within the top income bracket is affecting overall poverty reduction efforts, a United Nations report said."Soaring inequality is threatening poverty reduction and economic growth," the National Human Development Report 2007 noted, adding that Rwanda's high growth rates have hidden large and growing inequalities between social classes, geographic regions and gender.Titled 'Turning Vision 2020 into Reality: From Recovery to Sustainable Human Development', the report said to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Rwanda needs a mutually accountable partnership that links aid to national development and...
Authorities Should Investigate Deaths in Custody, End Collective Punishments
Deaths in police custody have increased in Rwanda, where officers of the National Police have killed at least 20 detainees since November, Human Rights Watch said in a report published today....
from All AfricaRwanda News Agency/Agence Rwandaise d'Information (Kigali)NEWSKigaliThe African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has approved a grant of US$ 50 million (Rwf 25 billion) to help finance the second phase of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Support Program (PRSSP II) in Rwanda, RNA reports.Government adopted a modified poverty fight model termed as the "Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy" (EDPRS) for 2007-2011. EDPRS followed the implementation of the 2002-2006 Poverty Redaction Strategy Paper (PRSP).The Bank said Wednesday in a statement that the grant would be used to improve public finance management by improving budget programming and execution. The grant is in fact from the African Development Fund, a concessional window of the African Development Bank (AfDB)...
Judge Fails to Recuse Himself Despite Past Conflict With Defendant
A people’s court that sentenced Franзois-Xavier Byuma, a Rwandan human rights activist, to 19 years in prison on genocide-related charges violated both Rwandan law and the fundamental principle that defendants must be given a fair trial before an impartial tribunal, Human Rights Watch said today....
from All AfricaThe New Times (Kigali)Emmy NamurindaRulindoThe Provincial Governor, Boniface Rucagu, has decried the poverty among residents of Kinihira Sector in Rulindo District, describing it as alarming.Speaking at the launching of the MTN antenna in the sector recently Rucagu said, "These people are real poor; you don't need glasses to see it. It is evident at first sight and every one can notice it. For over 40 years, this area (Kinihira) has been growing tea that has made other people prosperous, but not where it comes from; here people are still poor."The governor also called on the district and sector leaders to find out the root cause of poverty in the area. "You need to mobilise these people, discuss with them and know the root cause of their poverty. Maybe we can deal with...
from Delaware OnlineBy ANITA BRUZZESE, Gannett News ServiceOn an evening in February in Rwanda, Josh Ruxin contemplates how his life now differs from the one he lived on the Upper West Side of Manhattan a few years ago."It's actually quite comfortable [in Rwanda]. I have a house that's larger than what I had in New York, and it's always filled with people," he says. "There are, however, daily challenges I didn't have before."Those challenges: desperate poverty, disease and death on a daily basis."It's hard not to burn out," he admits in a phone interview. "You really have to create a space for yourself because everyone you meet has extraordinary needs no matter their income level. It's a daily barrage of personal and health issues."Ruxin lives and works in Rwanda as director of the...
from All AfricaThe East African Standard (Nairobi)Kimathi NjokaNairobiRwanda is to get Sh119 million ($1.7 million) loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF)for poverty alleviation.The announcement follows the completion of the first review of Rwanda's performance under a Sh840 million ($12million) Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) arrangement last month.The completion of the review will see a disbursement of Sh119 million, bringing to Sh238 million the total amount so far drawn under the arrangement.The PRGF is the IMF's concessional facility for low-income countries. PRGF-supported programmes based homegrown poverty reduction strategies that are adopted in a participatory process involving development...
from All AfricaThe New Times (Kigali)James TasambaKigaliThe mayor of Musanze District, Celestin Karabayinga has called for collective responsibility of all Rwandans to reduce poverty in the country.The mayor was addressing residents on Saturday January 27 after community work carried out in Muhoza Sector.Accompanied by the vice mayors Pascal Butunge (social affairs), Anociata Budengeri (economic development) and sector executive secretary, Amiel Ndahiro, Karabayinga said: "poverty reduction can and will be achieved by every Rwandan working for it.What is needed for all of us, is to collectively participate in contributing to the country's development. Every thing is achievable depending on ones' interest," he stressed.Karabayinga asked parents to take their children to school saying it...
Authorities Must Ensure Full, Impartial Accountability for Recent Killings
Rwandan police and judicial authorities must ensure prompt and effective law enforcement to deal with recent killings of participants in the justice system for genocide known as gacaca, Human Rights Watch said in a report published today....
from All AfricaThe New Times (Kigali)Magnus K MazimpakaKigaliThe Minister of Finance and Economic Planning James Musoni has said the national poverty levels had declined by five percent. Musoni, who was addressing delegates at the Fourth National Dialogue at the Parliamentary Buildings, said there were plans to further contain the poverty levels, currently estimated at 55%.He said poverty decline had led to an increase in life expectancy and a slump in HIV/Aids prevalence.The minister also lauded the performance of the health sector, and noted that Aids prevalence had gone down from thirteen to three percent over five years, and that the life span had increased from 49 to 52 years.Musoni, who was highlighting the economic situation in the country, also said the imports had increased,...