It was pomp and glamour at the Rwanda Defence Force Command and Staff College in Musanze District on Saturday, on June 11, as dozens of senior military officers officially completed a one-year course.
The graduation of the 10th cohort of the Senior Command and Staff Course attracted 29 RDF officers, two officers from the Rwanda National Police, and 17 military officers from 11 other African countries.
While the 48 officers completed the one-year core military course, 34 of them also earned a master’s degree in security studies from the University of Rwanda.
The graduation coincided with the elite college’s 10th anniversary.
Rwanda’s Lt Col Callixte Migabo emerged the overall best student, while Maj. Bervyn Gondwe of Zambia Air Force was named the second overall best student. Gondwe also scooped the Best Allied Student Award, which goes to the best foreign student.
Lt Col Jean-Bosco Uwiminsi of Rwanda won the Award for the Best College Research Paper.
While officiating at the graduation ceremony, the Minister for Defence, Maj Gen Albert Murasira, reminded the officers the work they are expected to accomplish in their respective countries.
"Our message to (you) is that after completing your studies in security, command, peacekeeping, and in dealing with terrorism as well as other security threats, you’re expected to put it into practice what you’ve learned,” he said, adding that learning never stops.
Lt Col Callixte Migabo (right) of Rwanda Defence Force receives a plaque for emerging the Overall Best Student, from Defence Minister Maj Gen Albert Murasira.
Murasira underlined the RDF’s commitment to national, regional and international security, adding that the college’s 10-year milestone was "demonstration of how far the college has come”.
The minister said the college’s mission reflects Rwanda’s commitment to international peace and security.
The event was also attended by RDF Chief of Defence Staff Gen Jean-Bosco Kazura, University of Rwanda Vice Chancellor Prof Nosa Egiebor, families of the graduates, among others.
The overall winner, Lt Col. Callixte Migabo, said: "We learnt different military tactics but, most importantly, the course has put us on a higher operational level, from the brigade level and upwards.
"I thank the Commander-In-Chief of the Rwanda Defence Force for this great opportunity he afforded us."
Maj. Gondwe, from Zambia, highlighted the importance of cultural diversity that characterised the course.
"In Zambia we’ve a proverb which says that 'the shrubs of today are the trees of tomorrow.' It means that the friendships we forge in such courses are not just about academics. We forge friendships that will bring our countries closer now and in the future," he said.
He added, "I enjoyed the hospitality here in Rwanda and I was able to learn some Kinyarwanda very quickly because our languages, like our cultures, share a lot in common.”
Maj. Marie-Chantal Umuhoza, a female graduate from Rwanda, said: We've learnt that security today is not limited to the fact that borders are well protected. There is no security when people have different social problems. We trained on how to respond to those problems as well."
Aside from hosts Rwanda, the cohort also drew officers from Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.