US academics impressed by Rwanda’s gender policy

KIGALI - Two faculty members from the University of Scranton,Pennsylvania, USA, have extolled Rwanda’s policies on gender equality. Dr. Sharon M. Meagher and Dr. Linda Ledford-Miller are in the country as a part of an initiative to form educational partnerships between the Education Ministry and the University of Scranton. “We were struck by Rwanda’s international recognition as a leader in gender equality, as evidenced both by Rwanda’s high level of women representation in Parliament and its commitment to gender equality in formal policy documents, such as Vision 2020,” said Meagher. She reiterated that it seemed natural to bring Rwandan and American students together to learn from one another about gender equality issues. The pair came with students who will work at Centre for Gender, Culture and Development (CGCD) at the Kigali Institute of Education (KIE). While in Rwanda, the University of Scranton students visited various women’s cooperatives, learned about the Rwandan genocide against the Tutsi, and also visited the Institute of National Museum of Rwanda located in the Southern Province. The students also partnered with Amahoro Integrated Development Project in Musanze to do voluntary work at a local orphanage and a home-building project. “Our students have learned much from the visit and their engagement with Rwandans. The pride of the country is clear and Rwandans’ enthusiasm is infectious. Many of our students hope to return to work side-by-side with Rwandans on various development projects,” Miller said. The Director of CGCD, Prof. Shirley Randell also praised the collaboration with the US University in the first course of KIE’s new master’s degree programme in Gender and Development which begins this year. Dr. Meagher is a visiting faculty leader of the new course, while Dr. Ledford-Miller has facilitated small group discussions at KIE and also facilitated day classes and activities for the Scranton students. Ends