|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
  |
 |
  |
USAID/ Rwanda - Success Stories
›Unity and Reconciliation Efforts
›Lake Kivu Methane Gas Triggers High Hopes
›Emerithe Can't Wait to Take Up "Surfing"
›USAID Income-Generating Projects Produce aMAIZEing ResultsUnity and Reconciliation Efforts
After the genocide, the newly-installed Government of National Unity created three special commissions, each with the status of a ministry, and tasked each with tackling particularly sensitive but absolutely critical needs in smoothing the transition from the genocide to longer-term stability and development. These were the Human Rights Commission, the Constitutional Commission, and the Unity and Reconciliation Commission (URC). Of the three, the URC has been functional the longest and is the most organized as far as personnel, administrative, and management structures. In 2000, USAID supported the URC through three activities funded by the Greater Horn of Africa Initiative to endorse African ownership, networking of resources, and conflict mediation. The projects included organizational capacity building, the creation of a website, and technical assistance for a "National Summit."
This summit was envisioned in the URC's founding mandate as the culmination of its first year's work of grassroots consultations, civic education, and conflict mediation activities. While these activities engaged a diverse representation of Rwandan society throughout the year, the summit was designed to bring the results of these activities to the general public, both at the national level and with a higher level of prestige and visibility.
The summit began in July and August, as key URC Commissioners traveled around the east and central Africa region to meet with Rwandan refugees who had not repatriated after the genocide. Other teams of Rwandan Embassy officials abroad met with their communities. The goal was to encourage them to present their views, if not in person at the October summit, then by written or recorded statement. On October 18, 2000 the National Summit opened at Parliament with speeches by Presidents Paul Kagame of Rwanda and Thabo Mbeki of South Africa. Plenary presentations on the role of poverty, justice, security, governance, and leadership on reconciliation began the next day. Members of civil society, minority, and interest groups, the Rwandan diaspora, and government officials then actively debated these issues in more detail in smaller groups of 75 people. The debates were often heated and although the original intention was to have each group debate a single issue, this proved impossible given their interplay in the current Rwandan context, so each group debated each issue. The last day, each group's conclusions were presented in a plenary session, followed by a call-in television program. Rwandans from as far away as Europe called in their responses and expanded the debate beyond Rwanda into the diaspora.
The results of the National Summit are now incorporated into district level action plans using participatory methods to promote on-going discussions of local unity and reconciliation priorities. The URC staff has now begun a six-month long, second round of grassroots consultations to continue bridging opinions of citizens in the field with those of the leadership in Kigali. Unity and reconciliation will take time, given the divisions created by the genocide, but the URC is making sincere and earnest efforts to hasten the process by promoting tolerance and understanding among all Rwandans.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Lake Kivu Methane Gas Triggers High Hopes
In northwestern Rwanda, nestled among the mountains bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), lies one of Rwanda's true gems-gorgeous Lake Kivu. The lake covers about 2,650 km2 of water shared by the two countries. Apart from its sheer beauty, however, Lake Kivu's waters harbor billions of cubic liters of unexploited methane gas. The existence of the methane has been known for over 50 years but aside from one tiny pilot electricity generating plant that provides some of the power for a nearby brewery, the potential of the lake to provide power has gone unrealized. What little power there is now in the region is very expensive and being generated primarily by hydroelectricity, much of it imported from the DRC. Economic growth of the region, Rwanda's breadbasket, is being seriously constrained by the lack of affordable power. Interest in exploiting the methane gas in the lake has waxed and waned, but a World Bank study completed last year injected new enthusiasm into efforts to tap its potential.
Working with the newly created Rwandan Investment Promotion Authority (RIPA), USAID asked an expert recommended by the Global Bureau's Office of Energy to take another look at state-of-the-art, environmentally friendly alternatives for exploiting the huge reserves of methane. He corroborated that the gas is produced by a bacteria that keeps renewing the reserves. Once it was determined that the gas can be safely exploited without endangering the environment, the expert recommended that the most practical and financially viable method of extracting the gas was to use swimming pool sized barge mounted floating modules. Each module could extract 12.5 cubic meters of gas and turn it into 2.5 MW of electricity ,which can then be "wheeled" onto the existing power grid system in the region. A pilot project could be completed for less than $5 million in two years, and if successful could be replicated many times over cookie cutter style to generate enough power for the entire region. This is far less costly and much quicker than waiting for the large scale World Bank financed project originally envisioned by the experts. Most exciting of all was his conclusion that the entire pilot program could be financed by the Rwandan private sector.
Rwanda's private sector is still in its infancy. There are a mere handful of manufacturing and service firms of any appreciable size. Skeptics, many from the government, said that the idea of the private sector taking on this project was total fantasy. However, with a little help from USAID, RIPA (whose director is former USAID Foreign Service National Bonaventure Nyabizi) pursued the concept, shopped the idea around and soon found several entrepreneurs willing to take a risk and put up about $500,000 of completely domestic capital to get the project going. The investors include the brewery, a textile plant, an insurance company, and a bank. In February 2001, just six months after the idea was floated, the Gisenyi Gas and Electric Company was born-the country's first independent power producer. The public sector had been able to do nothing in over 30 years!
RIPA Director Bonaventure and his colleagues at the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources have high hopes that within two years time, the lake area, gateway to the world famous mountain gorilla park, will have a wholly new source of environmentally friendly cheap energy to boost tourism, industry, and commerce throughout the region.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Emerithe Can't Wait to Take Up "Surfing"
Emerithe, a senior one student at the Forum for African Women Educationalists' (FAWE) Girls School in the Gisozi district of Kigali, is ecstatic. Last January 25th was a very special day in the young life of her school. On this day, the American ambassador, the minister of education, and the USAID mission director inaugurated a fully equipped computer laboratory at the school. The computer laboratory was funded by a $75,000 grant provided through the Greater Horn of Africa Initiative (GHAI) as a part of its special objective to "increase access to regional analytical information." This funding was used to purchase 14 computers and essential related hardware, two external modems to connect to the Internet, and all of the necessary electrical wiring. The laboratory is fully equipped and ready to use. GHAI funding will also train the teachers on the use and management of the laboratory and will provide a year of equipment maintenance. This is the first public secondary school in Rwanda to have an up-to-date networked computer laboratory.
FAWE is an Africa-wide organization dedicated to improving education for girls throughout the continent. FAWE is also the U.S.government's implementing partner for the Ambassador's Girls' Scholarship Program, funded through the Education and Democracy Initiative (EDDI), another USAID presidential initiative. During the past year, this program has donated $50,000 to provide school fees, uniforms, books, and transport to 67 needy and disadvantaged girls. The scholarship program also provides girls with mentoring facilities as a way to build confidence in their abilities, stronger self esteem, and promote social and academic excellence.
The FAWE Girls School in Gisozi started operations in the academic year 1999-2000 with a total of 160 students. The planned capacity of the school is 720 students. Currently the school has 309 students. Half of the students follow a French language program and half follow an English program. Students who have passed the qualifying exam are placed in the school from all over the country by the Ministry of Education. Special emphasis is placed on sensitizing the girls, who come from many different backgrounds, to the value of peace, unity, and coexistence. Emerithe, who lost her father and a brother in the in the genocide, saw her world start to come back together again when she found that she had won an Ambassador's Scholarship to the FAWE school.
The laboratory will enable the FAWE school to offer all of its students an up-to-date curriculum in computer science and greatly strengthen the teaching of math and science. Studies have shown that in Rwanda, girls are not encouraged as much as boys to study math, the sciences, and computer science and as a result are disadvantaged when it comes to entering university or the job market. It is hoped that the computer laboratory will enable girls to compete with boys on a more equal footing for advanced education and employment opportunities.
The computer laboratory will also give the school's students access to the Internet, which will enhance the formal classroom training they receive. The Kigali Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) has offered to provide the school with Internet wireless connectivity free of charge and will offer the school a preferential monthly rate. The one condition is that the school turns the laboratory into a "cyber café" after class hours so that the Gisozi community can take advantage of the new facility.
For the past year, Emerithe, who wants to pursue studies in science, has been anxious to start surfing the net; when she saw the new laboratory for the first time, her dreams were answered. She couldn't wait for the inauguration ceremonies to finish so she could get at the keyboard.
The ceremonies opened with a rousing welcoming song sung by all of the girls of the school. After a tour of the campus led by the headmistress, the invited guests cut a ribbon to formally open the facility and witnessed a brief demonstration. Emerithe was in the front row. Several representatives of the faculty and Emerithe's student friends expressed their individual hopes that the new computer facility would revolutionize learning at the school, providing entirely new avenues for teaching, research, and accessing information. The students echoed Emerithe's hopes that they would soon be connected to the world, and that the computer lab would give them the opportunity they had been waiting for. In response, the ambassador stressed the importance of providing a quality education to all qualified students, girls as well as boys. He told the girls that he hoped to return to Rwanda someday and find that many of them had achieved personal and professional success in their lives, and that one of them in the room might someday be the president of the country. Emerithe skipped the coffee and cookies after the ceremony to run right off to the new lab and begin surfing.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
USAID Income-Generating
Projects Produce aMAIZEing ResultsUmutara is a region settled largely by Rwandans who grew up in Ugandan refugee camps and returned to Rwanda after the 1994 war and genocide. They soon realized, however, that the semi-arid land of this region was unable to support the large numbers of livestock they brought with them. An economic alternative was needed. A number of local farmers’ associations decided to take a risk and began to look towards growing crops. This was a whole new venture for people who had known nothing but herding. The associations in Umutara decided to focus on maize production and approached USAID for assistance. USAID provided seeds, tools, fertilizer, and training. The members of the associations contributed the planting, weeding, and harvesting, as well as places for storage. The associations coordinate the sale of the maize and deposit the proceeds in bank accounts that have been opened for each member.
The results of the first two harvest seasons were remarkable—land once considered useful only for moderate grazing now produced up to two metric tons of maize per season. Many families are earning over $400 per harvest, in a region where herders are lucky to earn half that amount. Families put the newfound earnings to good use, paying school fees, improv-ing housing conditions, and purchasing medicines. The story of 60-year old Charles Gasana is exemplary. Although he had no house, he was given fields just like every other member of the association. Other members did not feel that he could carry out the work required to produce a successful harvest and asked that he divide up his land among others. He refused and worked day and night on his plot. The result: a 1.4-ton harvest. Everyone began asking him how he would spend the money. He replied that he would build a two-room house, one room for his family, the other for the storage of his future harvests of maize.
When the USAID financing was exhausted, rather than seek assistance from donors for expanding production, several of the associations got together and decided to apply to a commercial bank for a loan, using the expected harvest as collateral. This was almost unheard of since agricultural credit is virtually nonexistent in Rwanda. But the bank looked at the situation, decided that the maize growers of Umutara were worth the risk, and made the loan. These associations have now paid back that loan and been given another for planting costs this season. Now 33 associations have their own bank accounts and the farmers from Umutara are well on their way to self-sufficiency.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
More about USAID/ Rwanda
USAID/ AFR Success Stories
skip redundant nav
›Benin
›DR Congo
›Eritrea
›Ethiopia
›Ghana
›Guinea
›Kenya
›Liberia
›Madagascar
›Malawi
›Mali
›Namibia
›Rwanda
›Senegal
›Somlia
›South Africa
›Sudan
›Tanzania
›Uganda
›Zambia
›Zimbabwe
›RCSA
›REDSO/ESA
Updated: Wednesday, January 9, 2002
 |
|||
Last Updated on: July 19, 2004 |
