2015, a beehive of activity for Parliament

The year 2015 ends with Parliament having helped the country get some of the major laws adopted or revised– including the revised Constitution, the family and persons law, the law governing bursaries and loans granted to students, the law on Public Private Partnerships (PPP), as well as the law governing public procurement professionals. This year, Parliament revised the country’s supreme law with the most important change being the modification of presidential terms which had been requested by millions of Rwandans, who started thronging parliamentary premises since the beginning of the year. Adopted by Parliament in late November, the revised constitution was last week subjected to a referendum which saw an overwhelming majority of Rwandans voting for it, at 98.3 per cent. But the change will be preceded by one transitional presidential term of seven years for which any presidential candidates, including President Paul Kagame – will be eligible. The provisions in the revised Constitution give President Kagame a chance to compete in the 2017 polls at the end of his term in office. Parliament has said that the change was done in respect to people’s request to safeguard progress made to date and building a strong foundation for change and stability. More than 3.7 million Rwandans had petitioned the House to review the law to allow President Kagame to continue his stewardship of the country beyond 2017 when his second term in office expires. A few other changes were also made in the Constitution, including the reduction of Senators’ term in office from eight years non-renewable, to five years renewable once, except for senators who are former Heads of State because they are not subject to term limits. The term of office for the Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice was also reduced to five years renewable once, instead of eight years non-renewable. But it’s not only the revision of the Constitution that occupied Members of Parliament in 2015. Other important legislations were also enacted. Importantly, legislators finally passed the Persons and Family Bill, a set of rules that govern different aspects of life of people in Rwanda, from birth to parenting, marriage and divorce, and solving family issues. Discussions on the Persons and Family Bill, an elaborate law with 331 articles, had been going on in both chambers of Parliament since 2010. Enacted in October, the law has simplified procedures for divorce to prevent gender-based violence, recognised the use of technology to procreate, and set up a ‘family council’ that is legally vested with powers and responsibilities to settle disputes arising in families. Senate president Bernard Makuza described the law on persons and family as an “important law for the Rwandan society”. A closer look at the rest of the bills enacted this year also helps to understand how they could help transform lives. For example, the new law to govern public-private partnerships (PPP) that was passed in November has been touted by experts as a boon for big investments in the country, especially those from overseas. “My understanding is that more investors will come to Rwanda thanks to this law,” said Patrick Yoon, the chief executive officer of Olleh Rwanda Networks (ORN), a company that provides 4th Generation Long-Term Evolution internet (4GLTE) in Rwanda. ORN was formed as a joint venture between the Government of Rwanda and Korea Telecom, South Korea’s largest telecommunications provider. Yoon said that the PPP law in Rwanda is “a natural and clear message that the government is inviting overseas investors by guaranteeing them its support”. Some of the 3.7 million petitions sent to parliament requesting the amendment of article 101 of the constitution. (Doreen Umutesi) Local experts also welcomed the law, with Edmund Tumwine, the in charge of private-public-dialogue at Rwanda’s Private Sector Federation, saying that it will help protect investors’ engagement with the government. “The law shows how the private sector can engage the government on making joint investments. Prior to this law, it was not hard to make joint investments but there was no legal instrument backing up the partnership,” Tumwine said. Notable among the bills passed by Parliament in 2015 is also the one governing bursaries and loans granted to students, which enabled the government to channel students’ funds through a bank. Under the legislation, Rwandan students studying in the country or abroad may request for loans in the financial institution mandated by the government to pay for their tuition fees, welfare fees, or research fees. The law also sets up mechanisms to ensure that beneficiaries who have completed their education pay back their loans upon getting jobs. Currently, the student varsity education loans are being managed by Rwanda Development Bank. In line with improving government’s services, the legislators enacted a law governing public procurement professionals which seeks to improve services in public procurement and the management of government contracts. Remarkably, unfinished business in Parliament this year include enacting a law establishing and governing the Maternity Leave Benefits Scheme, which will make it possible for employed women to take a twelve-week maternity leave with full salary. Though lawmakers have said that enacting the maternity benefits bill remained a priority on the House’s agenda, debate about the bill is still on-going at the committee level in the parliamentary Committee on Political Affairs and Gender. The government has pledged that the Maternity Leave Benefits Scheme would be operational in the current fiscal year, which runs through June 2016. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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2015, a beehive of activity for Parliament