Six Rwandan youth have been invited to the 2010 Nkabom Commonwealth Youth Leadership Program which is slated for September 5-15 in Kigali.

The Nkabom Program is a flagship project of the Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS), the oldest and largest NGO devoted to Commonwealth affairs. The programme was first held in Ghana in 2004.

Rwanda’s representatives will be Angelique Ishimwe (23), David Masengesho (25), Innocent Ninsiima (21), Kagame Festo Karengera (23), Laure Rurangwa (22), and Noel Ntahobari (24).

"On behalf of my fellow Rwandan participants, I would like to express my delight at having been offered a place on the program, especially given its focus on youth, said Innocent Ninsiima.

"Young people have often been used as tools of violence, but they can also solve the problems they are sometimes used to create,’.

The youth activists beat stiff competition from numerous applicants, emerging as the country’s ambassadors.
Thirty five young people aged between 18 and 25 from around the world will gather in Kigali for an interactive 10-day program focusing on international understanding, peace building and conflict resolution skills.

According to RCS Youth Programs Manager, Claire Anholt, the standard of applications received this year has been outstanding.

"The knowledge, experience and perspective that our Rwandan participants will bring to the programme will, I am sure, empower their fellow participants to promote peace within their own communities and in the wider world,” she said in a statement.

She added that the programme develops a network of young leaders who can pioneer and revitalise peace-building initiatives in their communities, their countries and beyond.

Rwanda, which is the Commonwealth’s newest member, and where the average age is 18 years, will be an ideal setting for an initiative that propagates the potential of young people to be agents of peace and development.

The Commonwealth Secretariat’s Youth Program is a major partner, and generous support has also been received from the Commonwealth Foundation, the Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council, the Zochonis Charitable Trust and the Open Gate Trust.

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