Provost Visits Rwanda as part of Trinity International Development Initiative

Aug 24, 2012

Trinity Provost, Dr Patrick Prendergast visited Rwanda earlier this month forging links with universities in Africa in education and research as part of the Trinity International Development Initiative.

The visit was hosted by the National University of Rwanda (NUR), and organised by Dr Pádraig Carmody of TCD’s School of Natural Sciences and Professor Herman Musahara at NUR.

NUR is a key partner in the recently established TCD-UCD Masters in Development Practice (MDP) and as part of the course, 46 students currently enrolled in years 1 and 2 have the opportunity to undertake a summer field training programme in Rwanda. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between both TCD and the University of Rwanda in 2011 in the context of this programme.  

MDP students hosted by NUR are currently doing their internships in the Akagera National Park, Volcano National Park, the Gender Monitoring Organisation, and Mayange Millenium Village among others.  In addition several doctoral and post-doctoral researchers associated with the School of Natural Sciences carry out fieldwork for their research in Rwanda.

As part of the visit the Provost gave a public lecture on ’Biotechnology and National Transformation: Role of Universities’.  

Speaking on the occasion of the lecture, TCD Provost said: “Trinity College Dublin is committed to supporting partnerships with universities and institutes of higher education in Africa. Developing such partnerships is a key element of Trinity’s new Global Relations Strategy, and of the Trinity International Development Initiative. I hope that, in the coming years, we can deepen the teaching and research links between our two institutions.”

The Provost and a delegation of students from the Masters in Development Practice were also welcomed by the Minister for Education of Rwanda Dr Vincent Biruta.  The Minister commended them for collaborating with NUR and for their choice of Rwanda as a field of their internship programme. A presentation on Higher Learning Education in Rwanda outlined its aim to transform Rwanda into a middle-income economy by the year 2020.

The Provost also visited three Genocide memorial sites including the Gisozi Memorial in Kigali and the Murambi Genocide Memorial in south of Rwanda.