KCC comes good on its promise to reward top performing schools

BY GEORGE KAGAME

Kigali City Council on Friday rewarded six top primary and secondary schools in the city with brand new HP computers for their exceptional performance in last year's national examinations released at the beginning of 2008.

Speaking at the awarding of the gifts at KCC offices in the city centre Ms Martha Yakurije the city's Education Officer said that the computers were part of KCC's response to government Information and Information Technology policy. "this KCC's way of supporting school going children to boost their performance, we have also rewarded the best performing students every year with cash, tuition and other scholastic materials."

Yakurije said KCC has embarked on a vigorous campgain to raise education standards in the city, "we continue to monitor the performance of schools by constantly inspecting their facilities." Back in May, KCC rewarded students that came top of their peer in national exams in Kigali, the gifts included tuition subsidies for top students proceeding to tertiary institutions and other materials." She revealed that KCC was in the final stages of organizing academic competition for students in Kigali, the students would sit similar exam tests organized by KCC.

With Kenya recently scrapping working permits for Rwandans seeking employment there, Yakurije said KCC was set to introduce a "rigorous" campaign to teach school going children regional languages like Swahili and English such that they can compete for jobs regionally. "Early next year we are organizing an oral competition for pupils and we will reward the winners handsomely."

She added that Kigali was also set to begin start the acclaimed One Lap Top per child programme launched recently by President Paul Kagame. The programme seeks to introduce ICT and its related functionaries to school children while they are in their early education career so as to grow and master the information age. So 50,000 laptops have been supplied in the three district pilot project reaching Kigali y January 2009. Yakurije said KCC is currently sensitizing parents on how they help the success of the laptop project.

Among the schools that benefitted from the KCC gifts include ApeperCyahafi, Petit Seminaire Ndera, Fawe Girls School and Notre Dame. Reverand Jean Bosco Ntagungira the Headmaster of Petit Seminaire said his school would use the computer to boost its ICT department, " we are happy that in our endeavors to raise the standard of education in the country we have the support of KCC. This culture will encourage other schools to increase their performance and the school going children will benefit more from the competition among schools."