A delegation of 23 senior officers from the Zambian Defence Services Command and Staff College (ZDSCSC) are in the country for a study tour.

Led by the Commandant of ZDSCSC, Brig Gen Sitali Dennis Alibizwi, the delegation arrived on Saturday for a tour supposed to end on October 2, 2016.

Alibizwi said that the visit is part of the College programme aimed at cementing the lessons taught to the students at the College.

The students undertaking strategic military studies in Zambia hail from Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Malawi and Botswana.

While in Rwanda, the students will undertake an in-depth study of the history, defence and security establishments, geo-political environment, economic infrastructure, culture and heritage, social and welfare initiatives to ensure Rwanda’s security and stability.

The delegation yesterday met the Rwanda Defence Force Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Patrick Nyamvumba at the force’s headquarters, where they were briefed on the force’s organisation and roles.

Gen Alibizwi told the media that they chose Rwanda because of its positive post-conflict recovery.

"There is a lot of lessons to learn from this country in the way it is recovered. If you look at Rwanda of the 1994 and Rwanda’s today, they are totally different places. They (Rwandans) buried their bad past to rebuild a new Rwanda. And this is very important for the students to understand the way it recovered because these are some of the areas we cover in the studies; that’s why we are here”.

On Sunday, the students visited Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre to pay tribute to the victims of 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. 

Others institutions to be visited include RDF Command and Staff College in Musanze, some RDF welfare and production projects; pre-deployment training for Peace Support Operation at Rwanda Military Academy- GAKO, Ministry of Finance, National museum in Huye,  INYANGE Industries , KivuWatt Plant and BRALIRWA.