Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women, has commended Rwanda’s efforts in fighting gender-based violence and providing holistic support to its victims and survivors at Isange One-Stop Centre.
She was speaking during her visit to one of the facilities at Kacyiru Hospital in Kigali, on the sidelines of the Women Deliver Conference 2023.
"I would like to thank the leadership of this country— President Kagame and the First Lady—for their commitment and leadership to end gender-based violence and child abuse in this country.
"What we see here today at this one-stop-centre is really impressive, services that are provided to women, girls, and children when they are abused in whichever way, shape, or form,” Bahous said.
She added that what her team saw throughout the Women Deliver Conference is a model that Rwanda can be proud of, and can also export to other countries in Africa and the whole world.
"I will be promoting and advocating for more support to such centres in this country and also promoting this model throughout the world where I visit,” she added.
"We are also very proud of the partnership between the United Nations and Rwanda, and all the ministries, especially the Ministry of Gender, to work on gender equality and the eradication of gender-based violence.
"We hope that our partnership will only grow and become deeper so that we can really attain gender equality and a better life for all women and girls in this country and beyond,” Bahous concluded.
In the quest book, Bahous also commended Rwanda for committing to end gender-based violence.
Bahous also visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial to pay tribute to the victims of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.