Rwanda Senate passed 723 resolutions in the concluded 8-year term which it submitted to the government for implementation purposes, an Executive Summary of Activities of the Second Legislature of the Senate (2011-2019) shows.

The document, which was published on the Senate’s website last week, indicates that those resolutions fall within three clusters, namely governance (332), Social (253), and Economic (138).

The second 8-year term of the Rwanda Senate concluded October 10.

Outgoing Senate President, Bernard Makuza says the work of the Senate over the last eight years has contributed to the improvement of various facets of life in the country.

Makuza further added that the Senate held 456 sittings and assessed 145 issues from which it made the aforementioned resolutions.

"We have been getting responses from the government every six months about the progress on the implementation of such resolutions. This activity shows good cooperation between the senate and the government,” Makuza said.

"Through the assessment, we carried out, we realized that they have been implemented at 89 percent, which is a very satisfactory rate. We are happy with that,” he observed.

The resolutions, he indicated, included improving prison management, supporting farmers’ access to fertilizers, and urging the country to produce seeds domestically instead of relying on imports, as well as setting up modern cross-border markets to facilitate trade.

"We exposed various issues in prisons including inmates without dossiers, overcrowding, among other issues. Such concerns were taken care of and file management has been digitized. Everyone has a dossier and is informed about when they are supposed to stand trial. We think that such a move has an impact,” he said.

Jeanne d'Arc Gakuba, Senate Vice President in Charge of Finance and Administration said that many of the senate’s resolutions are intended to make a contribution in improving national policies including education, health, agriculture, settlement, expropriation.

"Our work, together with that of other institutions in the country has contributed in a way or another to the socio-economic progress of the country,” he said.

Asked why the resolutions were not executed at 100 percent, he said that some of them were still being followed up for implementation.

Gakuba explained that some resolutions required more funds which were normally provided at the end of June [of the year in question].

"This means that we have to wait to see whether the activities involved will be allocated funds in the next fiscal year,” she said.

Going forward, Makuza said that there is need to put more efforts in research because it is the one which better informs the work of senate, setting up a special organic law governing the senate’s government oversight, as well as reviewing the structure of the senate’s operations for them to better assume its responsibilities.

270 laws enacted

Meanwhile, the senate enacted 270 laws in governance, social and economic sectors, which once enforced, helps bring better changes in the lives of Rwandans, Makuza said.

As provided for by the Constitution of the Republic of Rwanda of 2003 revised in 2015, the Senate particularly monitored the application of the Fundamental Principles specified in the Constitution.

They include eradication of discrimination and divisionism based on ethnicity, region or on any other ground as well as the promotion of national unity; equitable power-sharing; and building a state governed by the rule of law, a pluralistic democratic government, and equality of all Rwandans.

Approving of officials in public institutions

In general, the Senate has approved the appointment of two hundred and fifty-four (254) officials, including 97 chairpersons and commissioners of various national commissions who make up the majority of officials whose appointment has been approved.

Officials whose appointments have been approved by the Senate include President and Vice President of the Supreme Court.

editor@newtimesrwanda.com