The 2022 intake of BPR Rwanda Bank Plc’s IGIRE scholarship programme graduated on Thursday, December 16, after six months of vocational training in different trades.

IGIRE youth scholarship programme, through BPR Bank’s foundation, aims to equip high school graduates with essential vocational skills. It is a partnership with the National Youth Council.

The 176 young people, who graduated on Thursday, were trained in agri-mechanisation, culinary arts, food processing, automobile mechanics, welding and ICT, through the Integrated Polytechnic Regional Centres (IPRCs) across the country.

"This programme is part of our contribution to the solutions to youth unemployment in the country. We can afford to sit back and complain, but that won’t change the situation. So, with one graduation at a time, we move forward,” George Odhiambo, the Managing Director of BPR Bank Rwanda, said.

He said that the choice of young people was deliberate and that it would lead to long-term results in the future.

Odhiambo explained that the IGIRE programme was established to respond to the skills gap that affects certain sectors.

"Hotels were opening in this city and they needed people who can do baking, and room services. Companies were digitising their services and they lacked people with ICT skills. These were some of the incentives that led us to establish the programme,” he said.

Odhiambo said that the bank management was mobilising resources to be able to have bigger intakes and that it was asking the IPRCs for more other technical courses that can be included in the IGIRE programme.

IGIRE programme started in 2018 with a view of contributing to the government efforts to reduce youth unemployment. So far, the programme has paid for the tuition of 550 youths in the IPRCs.

BPR Bank Rwanda Plc was officially launched following the merger of former KCB Bank Rwanda and Banque Populaire du Rwanda (BPR).

Caroline Wanjeri, the Head of KCB Foundation, encouraged the IGIRE beneficiaries to train other young people and create jobs.

"One of the things you must remember is that when you are given, remember to give. I will not ask you to give money; I will ask you to give back in terms of mentorship,” Wanjeri said.

Beneficiaries said the IGIRE programme had equipped them with skills needed on the labour market. Some of them will get start-up capital for their projects.

"Before joining the IGIRE scholarship, I had a lot of dreams but technical schools charged a lot of fees I could not afford,” said Francoise Ingabire, who completed a six-month food-processing training at IPRC Musanze.

Ingabire, whose project was awarded as the best, commended BPR’s initiative that provides opportunities to young people in both urban and rural areas.

"Igire has been a very essential programme to me after I completed my secondary school studies. I trained in automobile mechanics and I will be able to work in a garage. I also plan to open a spare parts store,” said Clemence Mugabekazi, another graduate.

Emmanuel Shema said: "The last six months training in ICT have opened more horizons for me. I will be able to create employment for myself and other graduates. During training, we also had internships to prepare us before joining the job market. Igire is really a solution to youth unemployment.”

Alodie Iradukunda, the coordinator of the National Youth Council, commended BPR Bank’s commitment to supporting Rwanda to reduce youth unemployment.

"Igire programme is addressing an issue that affects everyone. Most people say the youth need jobs, but they don’t provide the solution. So, programmes like these support the government’s outlook in terms of the development of TVET education,” Iradukunda said.