Unity Club, UoK Urge ESSA to Embrace Ndi Umunyarwanda: The Unity Club Intwararumuri delegation visited the University of Kigali – Musanze Campus on Wednesday, June 11, 2025, to conclude the fourth phase of the 2025 “Ndi Umunyarwanda” program at the college and university level. The event was held at ESSA Ruhengeri, one of the secondary schools supported by the UBUMWE N’UBUDAHERANWA Club based at the University of Kigali – Musanze Campus.
The Principal of the University of Kigali – Musanze Campus expressed his heartfelt gratitude to H.E. President Paul Kagame and the First Lady for initiating the Unity Club and for their continued leadership in promoting sustainable solutions that foster national unity. He warmly welcomed the Unity Club delegation, appreciating their consistent support and presence. He also extended his thanks to the management of ESSA Ruhengeri for their collaboration, and to all participants—especially the students—for their active engagement in the discussions centered on the theme: “NDI UMUNYARWANDA: Igitekerezo-ngenga cy’ukubaho kwacu” (The Foundational Idea of Our Existence).
Dr. Hakizimana Leopord, Principal of the University of Kigali – Musanze Campus, delivering his remarks.
Unity Club, UoK Urge ESSA to Embrace Ndi Umunyarwanda
During the event, Madame Sylvie Ingabire, a member of the Unity Club and guest of honor from the Unity Club Intwararumuri Secretariat, was joined by several dignitaries, including Lieutenant Colonel Viateur Kabengera from the Rwanda Defence Force Command and Staff College (RDFCSC). In her address, Madame Ingabire began by recounting the origins of the Unity Club: “Unity Club is an organization founded on February 28, 1996, by Her Excellency First Lady Jeannette Kagame. She brought together Cabinet members, former Cabinet members, and their spouses to cultivate a culture of unity and peace, which serves as the foundation for a country’s sustainable development.” She emphasized the role and significance of unity and resilience forums within universities and higher learning institutions, highlighting that students in these environments have a responsibility to be catalysts of unity and resilience, given their position as intellectual leaders of society.
PIC: Sylvie Ingabire, a member of the Unity Club, addressing the audience.
Members of Ihuriro ry’Ubumwe n’Ubudaheranwa from the University of Kigali – Musanze Campus presented a play titled “Ishyano Risiga Irindi”, which depicted how Rwandans, once united during precolonial times, were divided by colonial forces. The performance illustrated how colonial rule introduced social classifications that led Rwandans to see themselves as belonging to separate groups. Fueled by the propaganda of a divisive regime, Hutu militias were manipulated into believing that the Tutsi minority were not human, leading to tragic neighbor-on-neighbor violence during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
Years after the genocide, Rwanda now stands as a nation of peace and unity. Under the leadership of President Paul Kagame, the government has dismantled ethnic divisions and promoted Ndi Umunyarwanda as a shared national identity. The play also portrayed reconciliation efforts, including how convicted genocide perpetrators and survivors now live side by side in Reconciliation Villages—testimonies to the power of forgiveness and unity.
Pic: During the dramatic performance by University of Kigali students, one scene portrayed how the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA) halted the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and restored security and stability to Rwanda.
