Special Projects & Analysis

Teachers from private schools have been hit hard by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Rwanda Schools are unlikely to fully open anytime soon since they were closed on March 12, two days before the first COVID-19 case was announced in Rwanda. At least 14% of the 78,108 total…

A man fetches water from a neighborhood well, headed home in the residential area to the far right. Such scene will be history in 2050, as par the government’s planning. The IMF also agrees, but the journey is going to tough Rwanda’s past successes have been notable, but the country…

At the Gitagata Rehabilitation Center in Bugesera district, you find very young children, who would have been street kids. Here, the authorities hope to transform them into useful citizens Rehabilitation or transit centers are spread across different parts of Rwanda. As per official narrative, transit centers is where delinquent youths…

The owner of this home on the Base-Rukomo road route went through 5 different valuations conducted by RTDA, all bringing different amounts. The owner didn’t get any compensation, and has nowhere to go. This case is one of countless people whose lives were destroyed by a project that was meant…

“I am in a meeting. Will call back.,” is how many officials respond to media requests – and never call back. Even worse, reporters have experienced rejection and harassment. Ordinary people who speak to media are also targeted. How open and transparent are Rwandan officials when it comes to journalists…

A resident of Goma waits in line at a tap provided by government. However, due to very low supply, residents have to spend the night there for any hope of water. The problem though, the water at that tap is not the best quality An estimated 1.5 million people living…

THEY WERE IN CHARGE: Former Senate President Bernard Makuza; REB Director General Dr Ndayambaje Irenée; former RBC Director General Dr Conco Jeanine; Rwanda Polytechnic Vice Chancellor Dr James Gashumba; WASAC CEO Eng. Aimé Muzola; Gatsibo District Mayor Richard Gasana; Ngororero District Mayor NDAYAMBAJE Godefroid; Gisagara District Mayor Rutaburingoga Jerome; Huye…

James Musoni, Dr Isaac Munyakazi, Bishop Tom Rwagasana, Paul Muvunyi, Theoneste Mutsindashyaka and Pudence Rubingisa Five men are in custody for allegedly withholding the food meant for the vulnerable in their localities. The food was a central government scheme to feed the poorest during the COVID-19 lockdown. All of the…

Despite US President Donald Trump’s claims, a pandemic has long been among the top threats listed by America’s intelligence community. But even the country’s best analysts could not foresee that it would happen under a leader willing to sacrifice so many lives on the altar of his ego. Dan Coats…

Data from global infections may be giving false hope to governments and their people As of April 12, in the east African region the COVID-19 inflections appear to be very small in Burundi (5) and South Sudan (4). In Rwanda, number stood at 120, for Kenya 191, Uganda 53 and…

China’s success in “flattening the curve” of the COVID-19 epidemic has been held up as a model for the rest of the world to emulate. But what the world really needs to understand is that China’s “victory” required massive sacrifices by doctors, nurses, and other health workers whose names we…

Such distillation sites are not in the open for everyone to see. For the producers to show you where they work from, they have to be convinced you can be trusted and not intent on handing them to the authorities In one family, a mother lives with four children in…

Villagers in sectors along Rwanda-Uganda border live in fear. Gangs of men have been left to maraud the area as they go about their business smuggling Kanyanga, a crude alcohol, into Rwanda. Anyone who reports their movements risks death. Some families are so scared they don’t want to talk, even…

WHAT YOU ORDER FOR vs WHAT YOU GET: Top is the original architectural design of the Karongi model village, and Below are the 11 units constructed. The image below show exactly how the village looks today Nine years ago, Government of Rwanda through the Local Government Ministry got some funding…

Public Service Minister Rwanyindo Kayirangwa Fanfan (front center) tours the hotel that has been under construction for nearly 8 years A nearly Rwf 4 billion hotel lays complete but idle. The paint is slowly going off. Workers are regularly seen trimming the bush trying to creep into the large complex.…

A scene from a drama campaign on family planning organized by the Health Ministry as part of campaigns for birth control. However, as reported in this special project, when the women get to health facilities, they are given no choice A government scheme that ranks health centers by how many…

Outside Umwalimu SACCO branch in Kigali. In many of such branches, the entrance will be bustling with activity as teachers seek loans from their heavily government-subsidised SACCO. However, not all teachers are happy with how difficult it is to get small loans In 2016, Immaculée Nyirahabimana a teacher at Nyacyonga…

In January 2008: President Paul Kagame personally ordered and then supervised the redistribution of 54,392 hectares in Eastern Province which was owned by senior military and political officials including Generals and Ministers. Each would remain with only 25 hectares, except for those who could prove they had a long-term redevelopment…

The annual national dialogue or Umushyikirano opens this Thursday is Kigali. It is time the country is treated to dramatic scene of accountability and embarrassment. Away from these however, as The Chronicles details here, it has shaped the country today since it was first held in 2003. 2003: Beginning of…

Incumbent President Paul Kagame and First Lady Jeannette Kagame on the campaign trail in Ngoma district on July 23, 2017. At this rally, Kagame promised a new dawn for Ngoma The Rwanda Standards Board (RSB) and the Health Ministry, both charged with certifying new agro-processing factories, have ignored pleas for…

Map of the region showing the location of Kalehe adapted from the report Thirty-one (31) Congolese refugees are currently facing trial in a court in Karongi district which could see them jailed for many years. In February 2018, unrest broke out in Kiziba refugee camp, Karongi, western Rwanda. They were…

In Musanze district, a mass civil union ceremony takes place last year in October. With a few thousands Francs, a commisionaire and connections, your name can very easily appear at such a ceremony presided over by a government official anywhere in the country As par Law governing persons and family…

Patients wait at a health center in Gatsibo district, Eastern Province At Kagugu Health Center located in Kigali, Mukamusoni Martha has been there three times since August seeking remedy for a severe infection. The young woman has been given loads of medication. But the problem persists despite taking prescribed medicine.…

Inside Growing Rift Between Education Ministry and University of Rwanda Over STEM Policy After 2020, Government University Scholarships Will Be For STEM Courses Only For the last two academic years, no single student has been admitted into the History department of the University of Rwanda on Government sponsorship. Neither has…

This photo and many others are published on a Facebook page of FDLR militia of depicting “refugees” who it says its protecting in DR Congo forests Repatriating and resettling ‘Rwandan refugees’ is the sixth point on the original eight-point program of the Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF) and “Elimination of all…

In the wee hours of October 1, 1990, the Rwandese Patriotic Army/Front (RPA/F) rebels attacked the Kagitumba border post and overran it. The troops had mostly drove and walked at night to avoid detection of the Ugandan regular army and causing alarm among the local population. They were about 400…

These are some of the media we sampled and which we were able to get data from. As Rwandan media joins the rest of the world to mark World Press Freedom Day today, May 3, The Chronicles has gone to the newsrooms to find out how many reporters and editors…

There was widespread jubilation last week, when President Paul Kagame came out on April 12 to assert that although he respected the ruling, he did not agree with the Supreme Court’s decision to maintain Article 236 of the Penal Code. Article 236 reads: “Any person who insults or defames the…

Earning peanuts, thousands of these women and men you see with brooms on Kigali’s streets every day, seven days – all year, are the ones who have made it get global accolades. They work from 6am to 5pm. Fifty-five year old Mujawamariya has been sweeping Kigali’s streets for 22 years,…

The Episcopal Conference of Rwanda, a body comprising the seven most senior Catholic Church clergy in Rwanda, on March 25 sent a strange letter to all their Bishops and the Government of Rwanda. As Christians all over flock to places of worship for Easter this Sunday, celebrating the belief in…