Umuganda can be a remedy for divisionism - SA officials

A delegation of 18 people from Johannesburg, South Africa yesterday joined residents of Jabana sector in Kigali in the monthly community work, Umuganda. The officials are in the country on study tour aimed at learning strategies that the city of Kigali uses to maintain cleanliness. The group comprises of members of the mayoral council, waste management service providers, communication people, and those in charge of environment, among others. Lungile Dlamini, the Managing Director of Pikitup Limited, the official integrated waste management service provider to the City of Johannesburg, observed that the act of working together under Umuganda was one of the things that provide healing to the minds of Rwandans after the Genocide, and showed eagerness to take the lesson home, “I have observed that this act heals the people’s minds,” he said as he referred to it as “the way that we used to live in Africa” and expressed gratitude to the Rwandan citizens for teaching them “how to be African.” Residents of Jabana sector during Umuganda yesterday. / Nadege Imbabazi Nico de Jager, the vice mayor in charge of environment and infrastructure, said their trip to Rwanda was aimed at reviving the spirit of working together for their city, a thing that the former south African president Nelson Mandela had started but said was dying out. “For many years we have had a belief that we must join efforts to work together but somehow we lost it. So, we had to come here to learn about Umuganda,” he said. He added that he was “amazed by the level of adherence” that the Rwandans showcase by participating in big numbers in the community work, “Thank you for showing us the true spirit of community work. Experiencing this is unbelievable. The element of the participation of the people is just so humbling and it is an honour to be here,” he said. Patricia Muhongerwa, the Kigali Vice Mayor in charge of social affairs, told the delegation that Umuganda was one of the strategies that have helped unite Rwandans after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. “It is not just about work; it is a time for people to meet and talk, know each other, and relate,” she said. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Umuganda can be a remedy for divisionism - SA officials