President Paul Kagame will award scholarships to the three top performing students among the 625 who graduated at Kigali Institute of Education (KIE) yesterday, the Education Minister has announced.

Dr. Daphrose Gahakwa, who is also the Chancellor of KIE, said this while addressing thousands who had gathered at the campus to celebrate its fourth graduation ceremony.

"Only those who passed with distinction qualify for the Presidential scholarships so it is clear that whoever else wishes to further their studies should go through the Students Financing Agency for Rwanda,” Gahakwa emphasised.

The three are Jean Pierre Munyankindi, Berthilde Uwamwezi who attained diplomas in Librarianship and information science while Epiphanie Bagirubwira attained her in secretarial studies.

The Minister also hailed KIE’s efforts towards equipping Rwandans with the appropriate skills that will significantly help transform the country into a knowledge-based economy as Vision 2020 stipulates.

"Rwanda’s major resource is its people. Having graduated with diplomas, degrees and masters, you therefore have a big role to play so that your contribution to the nation’s development is felt,” she added.

KIE Rector, Prof. George K. Njoroge expressed that the staff is determined to transform the institute into an internationally recognised centre of learning that will produce highly qualified teachers and other professionals.

"We shall be the centre of excellence if we learn from some of the characteristics of other leading universities. Those higher institutions of learning diffuse knowledge and apply it. So if they can, then we can too, therefore, we should believe in our capacities as intellectuals,” he advised.

Njoroge also outlined a number of challenges such as the increasing number of students which stretches the physical and teaching resources, adding that the current level of funding can not meet the debt repayment.

KIE started its operations in 1999 as a young public institution of higher learning, the institute is committed to providing professionally qualified, competent and all round skilled human resources.

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