Worldcrunch
In February, Stino Muhindo Sivyaghendera lit a match and held it to the grass in the field of eucalyptus trees he’d planted three years earlier. In the months before, the army had set up a position there, and left deadly ordnance behind. He’d heard about two young men who were killed by an explosion in the area, and he didn’t want anyone to come to harm in his field.
The premiere of a Hollywood epic, the selection of a future U.N. leader, and the birth of a pop superstar.
As the Olympic flame of Athens prepares to illuminate the world of sports, Africa remains in the shadows. Yet the world’s youngest continent has an unparalleled potential to become a major hub for sports on a global scale.
A failed coup attempt in the Democratic Republic of Congo saw the unusual involvement and arrest of U.S. fighters, but it is part of a growing anti-Western sentiment throughout the continent.
After seven workers with the NGO World Central Kitchen were killed by an Israeli drone, we must ask what drives humans to give themselves to others, and risk everything. It should put any lingering cynicism to rest.
Updated April 7, 2024 at 12:25 p.m. The Rwandan genocide started on this day in 1994, and lasted for approximately 100 days, during which as many as 1 million people were killed. What was the Rwandan genocide? The Rwandan genocide was a mass slaughter of Tutsi and moderate Hutu civilians in Rwanda that occurred over […]
Western countries are shipping refugees to poorer nations in exchange for cash.
We should not be proud of of the insufficient response against the Damascus regime, but total inaction would be even worse.
-Analysis- “If I have been unable to mentor a successor or successors that should be the reason I should not continue as president. It means that I have not created capacity for a post-me Rwanda. I see this as a personal failure.” These words were uttered by none other than Rwandan President Paul Kagame in […]
Though peace is far secure between the Democratic Republic Of Congo and Rwanda, organized efforts to bring their youth together are multiplying.
KIGALI — About a 20-minute drive from the Rwandan capital of Kigali, there’s a barren road that leads to a construction site amid cornfields and banana trees. A single blue sign from the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation indicates the entrance to the location, which stands at the top of a hill. There, across a […]
Overrun with prisoners sentenced for their roles in the country’s 1994 genocide, Rwanda had to find a way to deal with its massive prison waste and reduce energy costs. It managed both with a biogas system.
BUJUMBURA — When she goes out alone of Burundi’s capital, Valerie has started wearing trousers in case she has to run or is dragged to the ground. On this day, Bujumbura is sunny with a light breeze coming off Lake Tanganyika — still her heart is beating fast. Valerie (not her real name) is always […]
-OpEd- PARIS — From Vichy France to the Algerian War, the demand that France “open the archives” resonates every time the country struggles with one of its “pasts that don’t pass.” Twenty years after the Rwandan genocide of the Tutsi people, researchers are once again singing this refrain, especially in light of the provocative declarations […]
KIGALI — The shocking thought is said out loud, and repeated. “I can only be relieved when I kill my father.” The 19-year-old who calls himself DG seethes with rage when talking about his father. “He’s a coward, a torturer who doesn’t deserve anything but death,” he insists. The truth about his conception, birth and […]
KIGALI — In the courtyard of the Ecoplastic factory in the Rwandan capital, a group of men and women are hanging plastic bags on a line with clothes pins, like they would do to dry a load of wash. “People pick them here and there and bring them to us. We buy them and process […]
KIGALI — As the 20th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide approaches, a “flame of hope” is being carried across the entire country, a symbol of reconciliation and faith in a better future. “I want to make sure that everything’s in order,” says the president of the Tutsi genocide survivors group in northern Rwanda. “The flame […]
BUKAVU – For the past two years, agricultural production has been increasing in the province of South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. And at least part of the credit goes to shopkeepers across the border in Rwanda. The neighboring store owners have been providing Congolese farmers with phytosanitary seeds and products that […]
Every since a private insurance system was launched in Rwanda, its citizens regularly cross the Burundi border to get better, cheaper care.
In Poland, Catholics have already seen it all on the religious front at home. To expand their spiritual horizons, many now look for new religiously significant destinations farther afield.
Whole families are forced to leave Rwanda’s struggling north. Boys look for work at an early age; the girls, instead, all too often are pushed to get married across the border in Uganda.
The procedure is gaining popularity amongst young men who believe, erroneously, that it eliminates any risk of contracting HIV/AIDS.
HIV testing has been set up at border-crossings, with particular attention on truck drivers and prostitutes who may be particularly vulnerable.
RWANDA – Severe weather kills and natural disasters can be particularly deadly in Rwanda, like elsewhere in Africa. The most deadly storm last year killed at least 72 people and injured more than 120. According to the Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs (MIDIMAR), in 2012 alone, 3000 homes were destroyed. Justin Kayira, Director […]
KIGALI– Beginning in January, every African visitor to Rwanda will be granted his or her visa upon arrival in the country from any border post. This “on-the-spot” visa process, according to Ange Sebutege, communications officer at the Rwandan Immigration Services, is designed to bring in more Africans tourists. Until now, visitors had to fill out […]
BUKAVU – During the occupation of the Congolese city of Goma by the M23 rebels last month, the nearby border with Rwanda remained open, and daily exchanges between the two central African neighbors continued as usual. “We have no problem with the Rwandans as people. They are our brothers, our neighbors,” explains a Congolese teacher […]
KIGALI – In Rwanda, children born out of wedlock often say they’d rather be orphans. “At least orphans receive some help from charities,” explains one 20-year-old high school student, named “ML.” Hiding behind the school, crying, this “illegitimate child” wonders what sin she has committed to deserve to be so mistreated — even by her […]
MUSANZE – The agricultural reform launched in 2007 has boosted the country’s agricultural output. Yet not all farmers are benefiting from the situation. Some struggle to sell their crops while others suffer from an unbalanced diet. They have become so desperate that they have decided to ignore governmental directives. A group of north Rwandan farmers […]
THE NEW TIMES (Rwanda), LE MONDE (France), BBC (UK), REUTERS Worldcrunch Rwanda is tipped to take one of five UN Security Council seats today, despite mounting pressure on the country over the allegations that it is backing an armed rebellion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A confidential UN report, leaked to Reuters on […]
KIGALI – In Rwanda, getting married has always been a complicated affair. Before anything, the families of the bride and groom sit down for a long negotiation. Once they have exchanged gifts and agreed that the couple should indeed marry, and of course settled on what the dowry will be, the traditional wedding can start. […]
KIGALI – There are preachers everywhere in the Rwandan capital. From minibuses to markets, from hospitals to the streets, all day, they try to get people to join their church. Early September, at the Nyabugogo market in Kigali, market-goers were surprised to see the Sainte-Famille parish priest. He had come to the market with worshippers […]
KIGALI – A customer and a bank clerk nearly came to blows recently in Kigali. The customer had asked the clerk to help him fill in the withdrawal slip in English, but the clerk refused. “How are we supposed to be able to fill in a document in English if you can’t do it yourself?” […]
GAHUNGA – Not long ago, the communities bordering Rwanda’s three national parks were the biggest threat to their survival. The villagers poached animals and illegally exploited the forest. But today, locals collaborate with the tourism industry and take part in the protection of biodiversity while improving their living standards. Much of the credit goes to […]
KIGALI – Every year, about 500 to 750 graduates from universities and higher education institutes are dumped onto Rwanda’s saturated job market. Without a position to match their qualifications, many settle for low-paid jobs while others resort to scams or even prostitution to survive. Twenty-five year old Yvonne has a bachelor’s degree in sociology but […]
In Rwanda, where 60% of people live below the poverty line and land is scarce, burying the dead comes at too high a price. A new bill before Parliament would introduce cremation, a totally novel concept in this country.
Fifty years after its independence, Rwanda is billing itself as the “African Singapore.” However, the country’s development is benefiting only an elite of the population, as disenchantment spreads.
After 10 years and about two million sentences, the tribunals overseeing genocide prosecutions have finally closed. Many Rwandans feel more relieved than reconciled.
As cities in Rwanda are urbanizing and gentrifying, the poor are forced to move to the countryside, where land prices are rising nearly as fast.