As part of efforts to enhance spoken and written English among public servants, the government has set a target of training at least 300 of them annually.The Head of the Training Unit at Rwanda Institute of Administration and Management (RIAM), Yves Ntabana, said this was in line with government’s programme to build the capacity of public servants.“Since the medium of instruction in schools changed to English, we decided that even public servants must undergo the English language training. This exercise has been on since 2010,” Ntabana told The New Times in an exclusive interview.RIAM is a government institution with the responsibility to train civil servants and private sector as well as civil society in technical know-how in administration and management issues, among others.“At least 854 employees have been trained since 2010, but given the fact that the British Council is now permanently here, we are convinced that more public and private employees will be trained,” he revealed.Last week, the British Council officially opened a permanent office in the country. The council specialises in international educational and cultural opportunities and claims to be ‘the world’s largest English language teaching organisation. It has been operating a provisional office in Rwanda for years.Ntabana said the development was timely, adding that it comes when public servants, including teachers at different levels, need English language training in order to adopt the government strategy towards the Anglophone world.In 2008, the government, in partnership with the British Council, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to teach public servants English Language.State Minister in charge of Primary and Secondary Education, Dr Mathias Harebamungu, said that the increasing number of public servants undergoing the English Training programme is a great step towards improving their competence.“Building the capacity of our workforce will automatically improve on service delivery and this enables citizens to get satisfactory services that directly reflects on the country`s development,” Harebamungu said.Since the shift from French to English as the medium of instruction in schools, the government and various development partners have engaged teachers, public servants, students and the general public in various programmes aimed at building their capacity to use English.
