HUYE — The National University of Rwanda has been accepted into the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU).

University Rector, Professor Silas Lwakabamba described the development as a ‘dream come true.’

NUR is the first university in Rwanda to be admitted to the association which comprises over 480 universities from Commonwealth countries.

"Joining the association will enhance NUR’s visibility to the global education community, opportunities for academic and research collaborations and professional networking in areas which include Libraries and Information, Research Management and Human Resource Management,” Lwakabamba said.

"It will also allow Rwandan students to gain eligibility for greater scholarship opportunities and an opportunity for academic staff to obtain fellowships.”

The National University of Rwanda is setting up Open and Distance degree programs and according to the Rector, the university will benefit substantially from sharing materials from Western countries and other less developed countries.

"We are going to gain access to the Commonwealth of learning, a rich web-based facility giving access to a wide range of open and distance learning materials,” he said.

Pamela Mudakikwa, a student union representative in charge of information and public relations, said joining the oldest inter-university network in the world will be of mutual benefit.

"Other universities in the association will learn a great deal from us about conflict resolution and how to manage post conflict societies given our experience after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi,” Mudakikwa said.

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