The Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration has warned that it will apply “administrative measures” on International NGOs that have not registered as required by the law. In a communiqué seen by The New Times, the Directorate stresses that this year’s registration exercise started in January and was supposed to end on April 30, “but by that time only 109 INGOs had registered.” However, Claudette Umulisa who is in charge of INGOs at the Directorate said Thursday that by August 20, the number had increased to 150 but insisted that more are still unregistered. She cited the INGOs that have not turned up for registration as Oxfam-Québec, Population Media Center (PMC) and Geneva Global International among many others. “In July, 2009, the Directorate passed different announcements through the media with the purpose of sensitizing International NGOs to operate legally through registration with the office in charge, but only a few of them responded,” reads a part of the communiqué. The statement called upon the INGOs that have pending cases and others that have not yet submitted any document for registration to do it sooner than later before administrative measures are taken. The Directorate registers international NGOs on an annual basis. According to the Directorate, registration for new INGOs is continuous, with requirements “clearly stated” on its website: www.migration.gov.rw. Immigration officers are presently visiting the activities of the NGOs countrywide “to discuss the progress and challenges in the implementation of the (NGOs’) 2009 action plan.”As noted on the website, the procedures for registration of international NGOs are outlined in two classes – those registering for the first time and those extending registration.First time registration obliges the organisations to outline their plan of action, a memo presenting the source of funding, an annual budget and, a recommendation letter from the line ministry.A memo presenting the link between the NGO’s programme with the country’s Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy (EDPRS) is also one of the first-time applicant’s requirements. Ends
