Ndi Umunyarwanda taken to grassroots

Rwandans across the country are being encouraged to embrace the ‘Ndi Umunyarwanda’ campaign as a way of cementing unity and reconciliation within the local communities.

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Rwandans across the country are being encouraged to embrace the ‘Ndi Umunyarwanda’ campaign as a way of cementing unity and reconciliation within the local communities.‘Ndi Umunyarwanda’ is an initiative that aims at encouraging Rwandans to openly talk about the country’s history, apologise, forgive, and work towards building a unified community.The programme, which revolves around the country’s dark history before and during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, seeks to encourage discussion as a way of building a nation based on trust and honesty. The initiative has now been taken to the grassroots level, with residents being encouraged to own it.It involves public lectures on the Rwandan history before and during the colonial era as well as before, during and after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Speaking in Nyanza District on Monday, the Southern Province Governor, Alphonse Munyantwari, called upon residents to embrace the programme, noting that it would further strengthen their ties and lead to national development."This will lay foundation for a strong nation where people live in harmony and work towards uplifting their livelihoods,” the Governor said.In Huye District, officials met with residents in the rural Kigoma Sector to discuss the initiative and encourage them to embrace it. Similar gatherings were held in other parts of the province.Senate Vice-President Bernard Makuza told residents that the initiative "encourages the culture of truth” vis-à-vis the country’s dark past. He said the target is to take the initiative at the village level, the lowest administrative entity in the Rwandan system.