On September 21, Umuhuza Organisation, a Non-Governmental Organisation which aims to foster a culture of peace, with the support of Bank of Kigali Plc, officially established three community libraries in Rutunga sector, Gasabo District, an event which coincided with the annual celebration of the National Literacy month 2021. Officials at Umuhuza believe that building a community of Rwandans who are well-educated and prepared from childhood will help the country achieve sustainable development and peace. Diane Gasana Ingabire, Programs Manager at Umuhuza said that since 2005, they have established around 4,000 reading clubs at village level, across the country and have donated over 600,000 books. She revealed that around 8,000 reading volunteers were trained to help children to read, adding that they also visit them at their home to share knowledge with their families. One of Umuhuza’s flagship programs is to promote a reading culture starting with children at young age. To date, they have established seven community libraries, including three established in Gasabo district with the support of Bank of Kigali. Gedeon Rukundo, Legal Manager at Bank of Kigali said that establishing community libraries aligns with the bank’s corporate social responsibility where the lender uses 1% of its total operating income to fund community projects. He said that when people read, they develop their thinking capacity, adding that the impact is even bigger if this starts at one’s earliest stages of life. “As a bank, we will have sustainable benefits through such activities. When we work with knowledgeable clients, they will be able to understand the services we offer in terms of the project they want to implement as well as the loans they request for,” said Gedeon. Jackson Niyomugabo, the Finance Officer at Rutunga Sector welcomed the initiative and acknowledged that the libraries will help the citizens gain knowledge. “We have different schools in Rutunga sector including a TVET. Books in the established libraries will help students to get more knowledge as some are about agriculture and how to create jobs,” he said. “To foster a reading culture, we will partner with students during school time and on holidays. We will also partner with trained youth volunteers to raise awareness about reading in different get-togethers.” Sylvan Mudahinyuka, the Managing Director of Kigali Public Library who also represented the Ministry of Education said that they are striving to give books that respond to community challenges. He added that the ministry seeks to deploy more books and reading activities in schools and community libraries where students and citizens can access them and fetch quality knowledge.
