About 200 Rwandan scholars will this month fly to China to pursue their studies on different scholarships. The students are going to pursue different disciplines like medicine, civil engineering, and education on different levels from Bachelor’s to PhD. Speaking at the send-off ceremony in Kigali, Dr Emmanuel Muvunyi, the executive secretary of Higher Education Council (HEC), urged the students to be good representatives of Rwanda in China. “You are now ambassadors and ambassadors have dos and don’ts. Make sure that your behaviour reflects Rwandan culture and values,” he said. Amb. Rao Hongwei, the Chinese envoy to Rwanda, told the students that China values youth power and it is the reason why they provide these opportunities. “Noting that the largest portion of Rwandan population is made up of young people, we highlighted the importance and necessity to provide Rwandan youth with more tools and opportunities, of which the most important is education,” he said. Sammy Teta, one of the students who got scholarships, told The New Times that attending studies at Hingwai University will equip her with knowledge to contribute to the development of her country. The Chinese government started to provide scholarships to Rwanda in 1976 and since the 2015 academic year, the number has increased. There are more scholarships to go to China for studies provided by different Chinese universities, the Confucius Institute, and local government institutions. In addition, experts from Jinhua Polytechnic have established a technical skills development centre at IPRC-Musanze, and the Confucius Institute at UR-CE has 13 Chinese classes with over 5100 learners. editorial@newtimesrwanda.com
