The Plenary Session on Wednesday, July 22, 2020, voted the law approving Rwanda's accession to the Marrakesh treaty to facilitate access to published works for persons who are visually impaired or print disabled.

The treaty was adopted at Marrakesh in Morocco on June 27, 2013.

The published works include literary and artistic works in the form of text, notation and/or related illustrations, whether published or otherwise made publicly available in any media.

The treaty was enforced on June 30, 2016. 

Substantiating the importance of the bill, Soraya Hakuziyaremye, the Minister of Trade and Industry, told lawmakers that it intends to make Rwanda one of the parties to the Marrakesh treaty.

"There is a shortage of published works which have features enabling people who are visually impaired or otherwise print-disabled to read them,” she said.

For that problem to be solved, she said, this agreement provides for ways by which people with visual impairment, their representatives, caring families, education and training centres can access needed published works without prior permission by the authors among countries adhered to the agreement.

The treaty provides among other stipulations that authorised entities shall be permitted, without the authorisation of the copyright right holder, to make an accessible format copy of a work, obtain from another authorised entity an accessible format copy, and supply those copies to beneficiary persons by any means, including by non-commercial lending or by electronic communication by wire or wireless means, and undertake any intermediate steps to achieve those objectives.

Accessible formats can include works audio form such audiobooks, larger characters, or braille.

Normally, the Minister said the right to reproduce, disseminate or market a given work is for the author or any entity granted the authorisation to do so.  

"Once Rwanda is one of the parties to this treaty, we expect benefits related to advancing education especially for the blind, visually impaired, or otherwise print-disabled people whereby the issue of lack of books and published works will be addressed, increasing opportunities in the lives of people whereby people with visual disabilities could get facilitated to access information,” she said.

She added that Rwanda will be receiving copies of works from the treaty’s member States, continuing to implement the principles of laws related to human rights, and promoting the economy and improving their welfare.

Minister Hakuziyaremye said that 69 countries have fulfilled the requirements set by the agreement. Those countries include Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania in the East African Community.

She said that some of the sponsors argued that there are works which cannot reach Rwanda before adhering to the treaty.             

MP Damien Nyabyenda said that when the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, ICT, Culture and Youth was making assessment tours in schools [in February 2020], it found that some students were not getting required academic materials responding to their disabilities.

"I realise that this bill is approved, people with visual impairment can have access to tools that help them in reading and following lessons,” he said.

MP Pierre-Claver Rwaka said the treaty represents an opportunity especially for the people with vision disabilities.