HUYE–Despite his old age, Dr Venant Ntabomvura, 86, a doctor at the University Teaching Hospital of Butare (CHUB), is still an active medical practitioner at the Huye-based health facility.“I always dreamt of being a medical doctor”, he says. “I love this job. So much love for it.” And, the love Ntabomvura has for exercising his profession is manifested in how he has dedicated his life to the career–in his advanced age, over the age of retirement.He specialised in the treatment of ear, nose or throat disorders (better known in the medical circles as otorhinolaryngology).Ntabomvura was born in the rural Kibirizi sector of Gisagara district, Southern Province, in 1926.He had 12 children, but one passed on, and boasts of grand children and great grand children.The elderly man, who doesn’t remember when he started primary school but insists it was around 1933, started his education at a missionary school in Save and later in 1939, joined the then Groupe Scolaire d’Astrida (Now Groupe Scolaire Officiel de Butare) for secondary education.In 1945, after six years of nursing training, Ntabomvura moved to Kibungo, in the east of the country, where he spent two years in internship.“After the internship, I returned back to school for another three months and we sat for an exam. I was then awarded with a secondary education certificate and started working as a nurse”, Ntabomvura says.As a nurse, he served for five years before returning to class once more. After one year, in 1952, he was presented with an award of ‘Medical Assistant’ (a diploma he says is equivalent to today’s A1 Diploma which is awarded to students who complete two years of University education).“With the diploma, I was allowed to head a health centre”, he says.By the early 1960s, Ntabomvura had served in several corners of the country and in the neighbouring Burundi.But, his desire to improve his skills in the field remained unsatisfied.“I always dreamt of becoming a doctor. It was in my heart and I knew one day I would get it,” the old doctor says.He blames white colonialists, whom he says, were reluctant to allow nationals access higher education.“It was a big struggle. I had to fight to get where I am,” he says.“I always asked myself why Belgian colonialists were denying us the right to higher education in the medical field,” he reveals in an interview which lasted for about an hour.‘First registered university student’In 1961, he witnessed the acquisition of independence from Belgian colonisers.“Before, everything was done and supervised by Belgians, but then it was left for locals who were not really enough trained to keep all businesses on the move,” he says.In 1962, Ntabomvura was named the Director General in a big ministry which comprised three portfolios: Health, Social affairs and internal affairs. He held the portfolio for health, a position he says is equivalent to today’s minister of health.He held the position for about two years. But still, he was thinking of pursuing his education.“I wanted to be a doctor to better serve the community,” he insists.Shortly before 1963, he met a white missionary, Father Georges-Henry Levesque, which marked a significant turning point in his history.In fact, the priest was seeking to start the first university in Rwanda but lacked infrastructure and students.According to the senior citizen, together they embarked on a difficult adventure to set up the university.“The country lacked infrastructure,” Ntabomvura recalls. “Even ministries operated in small houses. One would think they were just kiosks.”After a series of attempts, Levesque arrived in Butare and found a deserted one-storey building, which was in the past time used as a primary school for children of Belgians.“If he had found houses in Kigali, the [National] University [of Rwanda] would be now located in the capital city,” he says. The building, currently known as the Main Building (or Batiment Central) is still present at the National University of Rwanda (NUR), Huye campus. “Levesque was then faced with the problem of finding students. The few remaining Belgians were telling him that he will not get people to enrol at the university. The white men were really still considering us as a small population, in terms of mental capacity,” he says.“For their personal interests, the Belgians kept lowering his spirits, showing him it was impossible to set up a university in Rwanda.”“But, I told the priest that I would help him get students. I travelled to various parts of the country meeting my former secondary school colleagues and encouraging them to join the university”, he continues.“But many of them refused. But I kept pushing”.In 1963, the National University of Rwanda started with 49 students for the first intake. At the time, it started with three faculties: the Faculty of Medicine, the faculty of Science and Ecole Normale Superieure, which specialised in teaching educators. “I was the first to be registered at the University,” Dr Ntabomvura proudly says. “My registration number was 001.”But still, the university was faced with the lack of learning materials.“There was no library,” he reminisces. “We used books from our lecturers”.After five years of intense medical training, Ntabomvura graduated with a degree in medicine.“It was the happiest moment of my life,” he excitedly says. “My dream had been realised.”After graduation, he was appointed the Director of the then University Hospital (now University Teaching Hospital of Butare-CHUB), a position he held for ten years.Shortly before 1970, he was named the Minister of Social Affairs and cooperatives, an office he held for three years, before being moved to be the Rector of the National University of Rwanda, a position he held for eight years. After leaving the university, Ntabomvura went on to lead the Chancellery for National Orders (an equivalent of today’s Chancellery for Heroes, National Orders and Decorations of Honours). He held the position for 4 years.As the minister of Social affairs, he oversaw the establishment of many cooperatives across the country, the creation of the National Office of Population (ONAPO) to help the population make informed and responsible family planning decisions and the Banque Populaire du Rwanda (BPR) to increase access to finance.But, even in such high profile positions, he remained a medical practitioner, and a lecturer.“Before I accepted any nomination, I made it clear that I would remain a practicing medical doctor,” Ntabomvura says, as he struggles to raise his voice.“It was the job of my dream and I could not abandon it like that”.“As a medical practitioner, I always feel rewarded when I manage to treat and heal a patient. It is the best moment in this job,” he says. “But when the patient passes away, I feel very sad. I can’t even sleep that night.”To the young individuals, the doctor who calls himself a ‘friend of the youth’ has got an advice: to remain committed and focused to a target no matter what obstacles one may encounter.“I wish every young individual would know where they want to go and who they want to be and work towards that objective,” he said.Comparing life to a house, the old man said: “When you want to build a house, you start by making a plan of how it will be and how it will look. Then you purchase construction materials and you move on with the construction to match your desired house.”“If you have a target and vision and then you work towards it, there is no doubt you will achieve it,” he added.With over 50 years of service in different positions, Dr Ntabomvura has learnt one main lesson: the love of the country goes beyond personal interests.“My experience is that we must live to better our country,” he states. And, for any citizen, he has got a slogan that he wishes everyone adopts in order to contribute to building a strong country: “I live for my country and I love it. I am a son of this country and it needs my efforts to grow because if it develops, I develop as well.”“If we could all think like that, Rwanda would soon be a paradise”, he concluded.
