Night club owners, as well as local DJs, have welcomed the latest directive by government giving a green light to the reopening of dance floors in the country. A communique issued on February 3 by Rwanda Development Board (RDB) states that night clubs managers will have to seek permission to reopen, and the approved ones will operate at 50 percent capacity, within permitted business operating hours, according to the communique. The same communique gave a green light to the popular live bands and concerts. Revelers of all these events must present a negative Covid-19 certificate taken within 72 hours and must be fully vaccinated, it indicated. In addition to that, all employees at night clubs should be tested for Covid-19 every 14 days and fully vaccinated as eligible staff get the booster shot. Divine Iradukunda, a renowned female DJ known as DJ Ira, said that this is an opportunity to be back in business and revive their pockets as the closing of nightclubs has brought about tough financial challenges. George Gacheru, owner of Sky Lounge located at Gisimenti in Remera, welcomed the permission for the reopening of nightclubs and said that the issue remains on Covid test being mandatory which could keep away a bigger number of clients. To tackle that, Gacheru said that he plans to offer a discount to revelers. Alex Ndahiro, best known as DJ Alex, said that the impact of nightclubs suspension has been heavy on DJs in Kigali but some managed to find alternatives of generating income. “Two years down the road without work while you depend on that, it was difficult. Kigali life is expensive. Some went back to rural areas. Others, however, found alternatives by creating jobs with their other skills like graphic designs, and some also went back to school,” he said. He continued saying that there will be some creative changes in working conditions, however, he finds that established business operating hours will present hindrances to what a nightclub essentially is. “It’s a nightclub. Even the name says it is supposed to be in the night, so closing at 11p.m reduces our working period.” Eugene Habimana, also known as Cobra, the owner of Cocobean bar and nightclub, said that this is a good move to boost back the economy but denotes that there won’t be many changes since clients are driven away but the Covid-19 preventive measures, especially the mandatory test done within 72 hours. He said that the option is to continue operating and serve those who will be willing to comply while waiting for others to change their minds as well. RDB urged entertainment avenues to verify the authenticity of the Covid-19 tests and certificates, as it plans to issue penalties to non-complying establishments.
