KIGALI - A group of 13 hotel assessors successfully completed an eight-week intensive training on hotels and restaurants standards within the East African Community. The training programme was organised by the East African Community (EAC) Secretariat in collaboration with Rwanda Development Board (RDB).

Vestine Mukeshimana, one of the trainees, said that the skills acquired would enable her to improve the standards of hotels and restaurants in the region.

"We are committed to boost the standards of hotels and restaurants by managing the classification and grading process,” she added.

Mukeshimana stated that the training enabled her to understand the classification assessment techniques applicable in the EAC region.

The trainees learnt also how to assign the star rating methodology and the professional code of conduct in carrying out classification assessment.

Rica Rwigamba, Head of the Tourism and Conservation at RDB, said that though the hotel assessors completed the training and were awarded certificates, they would have to sit for an examination on 30th of May.

"They will not be limited to Rwanda. They also will be assessors in other EAC partner countries,” she noted.

 "There are still gaps in the some of the services we offer but these hotel assessors will help us in addressing them by advising the hoteliers to classify their hotels,”

Brenda Mugambi, the Principal Tourism Officer at EAC Secretariat remarked: "We are done with Rwanda. Hotel assessors in Kenya completed in 2009. By the end of this month Tanzania begins, followed by Uganda and Burundi”.

She said that this would not only assure the clientele of high standards and good service but also be used as a marketing tool.

She added that this would also create uniformity among tourism products within the EAC.

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