Rotary Club of Kigali Seniors Welcomes New President

By Elias HAKIZIMANA.

The Rotary Club of Kigali Seniors (RCKS) has appointed Aimable Rudakemwa Rumongi as its new president, succeeding Andrew Rugege, who led the club over the past year. The handover ceremony took place at the Kigali Serena Hotel on Friday evening, July 26, 2024.

President Rumongi was elected by the club’s board members to serve a one-year term for 2024-2025. Under the previous leadership, the club focused on peace education and engaging youth in peaceful retreat clubs.

Highlighting the achievements of the past year, outgoing president Andrew Rugege noted that the club provided health insurance to families with lower financial capacity and helped them build resilience to sustain their needs in the future. “We helped them establish small businesses and saving groups, which enabled them to develop micro businesses to meet basic needs,” Rugege said.

During Rugege’s term, club membership increased from 26 to 39 members. RCKS, in partnership with Rotary California, also worked on a project to eradicate malnutrition and stunting.

“We request the incoming board to continue these efforts and build trust to help those in need. I wish them success in their projects,” Rugege added.

Rugege also emphasized the club’s regular meetings, held every second Friday of the month, where members discuss building peace in their communities, current affairs, and each other’s families to ensure harmony.

In his inaugural speech, the Incoming President Rumongi praised the efforts of the club’s founder, Mpyisi Gerald, who established and nurtured the club. He also commended Andrew Rugege for his dedication to the club’s development.

“To the outgoing board, thank you for your tireless work in advancing the development and sustainability of this club. In our club, we do things differently because age is not a barrier. Engaging various perspectives, we are actively involved. The theme of this year is ‘The Magic of Rotary.’ Our 2024-2025 strategy will focus on finalizing projects such as providing water to rural communities and eradicating teenage pregnancies. We will also recruit at least one Rotary Club member at the university level and train both new and current members. I plan to donate a large water pump worth over Rwf6 million to provide clean water to one cell,” Rumongi said.

“We need to provide clean water to the residents near Lake Muhazi, who struggle to access clean water. We will install a pumping system from the lake to uphill households in at least one cell, starting with Musha cell. We will work with local authorities to identify the cell most affected by water scarcity,” Rumongi elaborated in an interview.

Other priorities for Rumongi’s term include combating teenage pregnancies and involving universities in peace education. “We shall work with international child advocate organizations, including UNICEF, to eradicate teenage pregnancies, which burden families and hinder development,” Rumongi stated.

Rumongi also plans to have representatives from universities in Rwanda, starting with one in Kigali, and expanding to other universities nationwide. “Rotary Club builds on the government’s vision of creating a healthy, resilient, inclusive, and prosperous society. We aim to promote a peaceful and cohesive community,” he added.

Rotary is an international organization of individuals united to raise funds to tackle community problems. RCKS aims to continue helping Rwandans who lack financial capacity. Over the past three years, the club has provided health insurance to 1,000 citizens and enhanced peace education in Rwanda with the volunteer support of 50 youth who helped address family conflicts. They also aim to increase membership to 150 people in the next three years and implement projects to tackle poverty nationwide.

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