Museveni, Kagame join Kanombe residents in Umuganda

KICUKIRO - On the second day of his 4-day state visit, Uganda’s President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni joined his host President Paul Kagame and the residents of Nyarugunga sector in Kicukiro District for the end of the month community work locally known as “Umuganda.” The two Heads of State who were joined by the British Minister for International Cooperation, Andrew Mitchell, and members of the Conservative Party, participated in the construction of classrooms for the 12-Year Basic Education at Groupe Scolaire Camp Kanombe. Cabinet ministers from the two countries, top government officials, diplomatic corps as well as the army and police, also took part. President Kagame thanked President Museveni and Mitchell for the continued friendship with the Rwandan people, adding that both dignitaries are not just friends of Rwanda but also individuals who have contributed towards the development of the country. He noted that President Museveni has for a long time contributed to the development of Rwanda, while the Conservatives led by Andrew Mitchell, through their social programme, Project Umubano have built schools, hospitals as well as helped develop skills. President Kagame said that the monthly activity where citizens come together to work on different programmes, is a culture that is rooted in the African tradition. “Umuganda is not a tradition limited to Rwandans. It is a practice for all Africans. When a house catches fire, neighbours join forces to extinguish the fire. When it collapses, they rebuild it or construct a new one,” “But this practice transcends economic activity to encompass joy and happiness. When a family is in joy, neighbours join that family, whether it’s a wedding or any other kind of celebration, they partake of the joy,” Kagame said. President Kagame said that Rwandans apply Umuganda to address issues that concern them through joining efforts, observing that once the development targets are met, the same practice will be used to celebrate the achievements. He promised that when the right time comes, he will visit Uganda and participate in the community activities. The President called on the citizens to continue embracing Umuganda. Speaking in a mixture of Kiswahilli, Runyankole and Kinyarwanda, the Uganda President commended Rwanda for applying an African traditional practice of Umuganda for modern economic development, a policy that has since paid off remarkably. Museveni said that Rwanda and Uganda share a lot in common in terms of language and cultural practices and Umuganda is one of those that existed in the two societies traditionally, though Rwanda has been able to modernise the practice. “Am very happy to be here in Rwanda and to be part of this Umuganda, a cultural practice that is found across Africa,” “What Rwanda has done is to modernise this old practice and use it for development while the rest of us have abandoned our cultural practices and instead adopted those of foreigners. I commend Rwanda on this,” Museveni said. The Ugandan President said that Rwanda has not only restored the traditional practice which brings about development but it also promotes unity among the people, while enabling the country to save a lot of resources. “In Uganda we have built many classrooms, coming from 28,000 to 90, 000 classrooms to date but these have been built with resources- by giving contracts to people who sometimes do shoddy work and take the money,” “But as you can see from what we have done here, the government is able to save a lot of money from its budget expenditure by people doing the work themselves. I would like to commend you for a job well done,” Museveni said. In support of the project, President Museveni contributed US$300,000 towards the completion of the school. Shortly after the community work, President Museveni and President Kagame paid a visit to the Kigali Special Economic Zone (formerly the Free Trade Zone) where the two Heads of State were briefed on the planned industrial zone. The sate-of-the-art industrial park located in Gasabo District which is currently under construction will see investors construct industries and warehouses in a planned way with the government providing infrastructure. Over 25 local and foreign investors have booked space already. The Presidents were shown around the park as well as projects that are already underway and those nearing completion. Later, the Heads of State toured beverage manufacturer, Inyange Industries, also located in Gasabo district as well as a modern housing estate in Kabuga, a few metres from Inyange industries before heading out for a lunch hosted by President Kagame at his country home in Muhazi. Ends