EASTERN PROVINCE

KAYONZA — Kayonza Modern Secondary School last week signed a deal with Bentford girls’ School of West London –UK, to begin an exchange program for teachers and students.

The deal signed between Stephen Rwamurangwa, the School Headmaster and his counterpart Julie Tomkins, at Kayonza, was reportedly planned since July 2007.

"Our partnership started in July 2007 and we are yet to come up with a memorandum of understanding after putting in place all formalities", Rwamurangwa told The New Times after the signing.

"We intend to put in place teacher-student exchange program." he added.

He noted that Rwanda is a developing while England is a developed country, therefore, "we can learn much from them including knowledge and skills."

Tomkins said that both schools looked forward to benefiting from each other.

"It is a two way partnership. Apart from teacher-student exchange program, the two schools can learn from each other’s culture, history, laboratory, books and any other resource materials," Tomkins said.

Damas Muhororo, the district mayor who presided over the function said the cooperation should stretch beyond school level to wider understanding that would benefit other citizens from both nations.

"This is just the beginning but the end would be more beneficial to residents of both nations," Muhororo observed.

Mary Macleod, who mediated the pact, said she initiated the deal after being touched by the horrors of the 1994 Rwanda Genocide during her first visit to the country in 2007. She shared the vision with Rwamurangwa and worked out the modalities of establishing the partnership between the two schools, she said.

Bentford School has 150 teaching and non teaching staff while Kayonza Modern also has a total of 150 staffers, in comparison, they noted, the two schools share a lot in common.

Students who talked to The New Times also expressed enthusiasm in the pact saying they would strive to maintain the strong bond.

"We highly welcome them, it is a big gift to have such high profile visitors at our school," James Sunday, the head prefect said.

He said they have created several student clubs in an effort to create unity among students, including Unity and Reconciliation club, Cultural club, Environmental club and HIV/Aids club. "We uprooted genocide ideology and we shall uproot it wherever we come across it," Sunday said.

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