The new season of Umurenge Kagame Cup tournament is back to action putting an end to a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The last time the final games took place was in June 2019.

The tournament, which was officially launched Saturday, January 7, in Busasamana Sector, Rubavu District in Western Province, is organized annually with a goal to promote ‘good governance’, talents and good health.

Its return was welcomed by a big number of members of the community who believe that its importance is way beyond competition but also an opportunity for the government to socialize with the community at large through the tournament.

"I learnt a lot from these competitions because, besides players showing their talent, authorities have been encouraging us to take part in national development,” said Cedric Iratwizihije, a resident of Busasamana sector.

While launching Umurenge Kagame Cup at the national level, Gervais Munyanziza, the Director of Sports at the Ministry of Sports (MINISPORTS), urged the residents to make the best out of sports through tournaments like Umurenge Kagame up

He said the competitions are not only celebrations for good governance and how citizens should play their part but also a good opportunity to mobilize people on different government programs as sports attract a lot of people.

"We want all people to do sports for the benefit of good health, and it is good for talent promotion, too, especially for young people in schools,” Munyanziza said

Pacifique Ishimwe, the Vice Mayor of Social Affairs at Rubavu District, emphasized that the tournament has been a good platform to interact with citizens on government programs such as education where parents are advised to avoid school drop-outs.

"People came in big numbers when we relaunched the tournament, which "is good space for us to come closer to our population and interact with them on different matters,” he said.

The tournament brings together all 416 sectors across the country where they compete in various sports disciplines including football, volleyball, sit ball and cycling among others.

Lack of sport facilities and football fields in some sectors are some of the challenges presently encountering the tournament as highlighted during the opening.

The tournament was opened by a men’s football match that saw Busasamana Sector beat Cyanzarwe 1-0.