Special Olympics Rwanda through the Unified Champion Schools project donated sports kits worth $41850 (about Rwf 47m) to 25 secondary schools from all districts of the Northern province.

MUSANZE, May 11, the governor of Northern province, Dancille Nyirarugero presided over a ceremony where Special Olympics Rwanda handed over a generous donation of sports equipment to 25 schools from Musanze, Gakenke, Gicumbi, Rulindo, and Burera districts.

Among other guests at the hand-over ceremony were Mrs. Rose Baguma, the Director General of Education Policy and Analysis at the Ministry of Education and Mr. Christopher Karenzi, the Secretary General at Special Olympics Rwanda. The ceremony was also attended by the beneficiary districts.

The initiative aims to improve and revitalize inclusive education via sports in all districts across the country. After the Eastern Province and the Kigali City, the Northern Province were next in line.

Speaking to John Bosco Muhamyangabo, the Unified champion schools project manager, he throws light on those materials and spell out the process of them handing over to the selected schools.

“The equipment is provided to pre-trained schools. For each school, we instruct a teacher and coach in capacity building. A teacher is taught what intellectual disability is, the difference between a person with intellectual disability and mental illness.”

“We also teach the coaches how a child with intellectual disability interacts with children without intellectual disabilities and the impact of that harmony on his/her life. And that’s the main goal of Unified Champion Schools,” said Muhamyangabo

Each school received a package comprises of soccer and bocce balls, stopwatch, whistles, corners, sports jerseys and athletic gear. The equipment will benefit an estimated 250 students in northern province.

On the side of Ministry of education, Rose Baguma appreciates the partnership between Ministry of Education and Special Olympics Rwanda as it helps to implement inclusive education and school sports policies at the same time.

“SOR contributes through the Unified Champion Schools in education of children with intellectual disabilities and the kits issued won’t be used by student with Intellectual disabilities only. The student without intellectual impairments benefit from the kits too.”

The cabinet adopted the Special Needs and Inclusive Education policy in 2019 along with its implementation plan. Baguma is quite positive that the Ministry of Education will continue to create capable educators who can help children with disabilities.

“All teacher candidates at the University of Rwanda/College of Education are educated about special needs and inclusive education policy, with the goal of ensuring that all children, including those with disabilities, share equally the best of inclusive and quality education.”

According to Dancille Nyirarugero, the northern province governor, she praised Special Olympics Rwanda for its contribution to improve the educational quality of children with intellectual disabilities through sports.

“I am grateful to SOR for these Sports equipment provided. Sports itself is life, but Sport and physical activities positively impact academic performance hence improves the quality of education”

 “So, these materials in particular will help us integrate the children with intellectual disabilities in society,” declared the northern province governor.

So far, UCS project has touched all the corners of country. 70 eastern province schools, 40 from Kigali City and now 25 in the North have received the sports kits through this initiative. On Friday, SOR continued the donation in western province where 35 schools received the same package. Later, 40 schools in the southern province will be reached as well.

Unified Champion School is a His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan-supported program that has been in existence since 2020