Regional
How Unity Club shaped Rwanda’s future
In
1996, Rwanda's First Lady Jeannette Kagame brought together Cabinet members and
their spouses to establish Unity Club Intwararumuri, which translates to “Torch
bearer”.
Their
goal was to promote cohesion among themselves and work together to enhance
unity and peace.
Unity
Club Intwararumuri is an example of one of the initiatives contributing to
building unity among Rwandans in the same spirit as other home grown solutions
such as Ndi Umunyarwanda, Ingando,
Itorero ry’Igihugu, Abunzi, Gacaca, Girinka and Umuganda.
Its
inception marked a significant step towards fostering unity and peace in a
nation that had been ravaged by division, serving as a beacon of social cohesion
and inspiring citizens to follow suit.
Unity
and reconciliation among Rwandans had reached at 95 per cent in 2021 after the
1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
The
importance of political leaders in shaping the destiny of their communities
cannot be overstated. In Rwanda's case, leadership plays a pivotal role in
transitioning the nation from division to unity, from chaos to order.
Social
cohesion among Rwandans was destroyed by bad leadership which promoted
divisionism. With Unity Club, Rwanda’s leadership is brought together for a
common purpose of fostering unity not only among leaders but also among the
Rwandan society.
Rwanda’s
leadership laid the groundwork for the policies and actions that would
reconcile, stabilize, and elevate Rwanda to socio-economic viability. Remarkable
strides in social cohesion, stability, and socio-economic and political
transformation have been achieved.
Unity
Club enhanced unity and peace as the foundation for sustainable development in
Rwanda. It has been instrumental in instilling the process of contributing to
the restoration of the national identity, introducing a Unity Award to
recognize exemplary achievements, and advocating for widows and widowers,
especially those who lost their families during the 1994 Genocide.
Supported
by responsible government institutions, Unity Club provided material, moral and
emotional support to vulnerable children. Following the Rwandan government
policy to phase out orphanages, it supported the community to cater for children
in their families. Children who had grown up in orphanages were given their own
homes and facilitated to be self-reliant adults.
Unity
Club put in place a program for caring for widows and widowers of the 1994
Genocide through provision of shelter, health care and other forms of social
assistance, so that they live in dignity and grace.
It
created a Unity Award to preservers of the pact of unity known as Abarinzi b’Igihango to recognize their exemplary
achievements in promoting unity. These individuals are living testimonies of
the power of unity in changing their lives and the lives of their neighbors for
better.
Unity Club engaged different women networks at national level with aim of mentoring and empowering women in leadership. To strengthen the “Rwandan spirit” among youth, Unity Club started dialogue in higher learning institutions aimed at setting up a forum for exchange of ideas.