Hundreds of thousands welcome President Kagame in Gicumbi district, Northern Rwanda, during the 2010 presidential election campaigns (PPU photo)
A petition launched in support of President Paul Kagame’s scheduled award at Oxford University on May 18 has attracted more than 1,800 signatures – and still counting as the event nears.
The high profile event to be held at the Said Business School has been organized by the Oxford Business Network for Africa, a graduate student grouping at the institution. President Kagame will be awarded the first Distinction of Honour for African Growth award in recognition of Rwanda’s development.
An online petition was launched on Wednesday this week as a public show of support for the award. By Friday morning, it had attracted 1,800 signatures – only 200 short of the 2,000 signatures expected by the petitioners.
“The evidence of Rwanda’s progress is undeniable,” reads the petition. “…the economy has grown at a rate of over 8% for the past ten years, over 90% of the population has access to health care, Rwandan children have access to free education and over one million people have been lifted out of poverty in the past five years.”
To add a signature, anybody logs onto this link PETITION and they simply add their initials using a valid email. You can also add a comment to the petition. The petitioners expect to submit the final list of the signatures to the Oxford University administration as token of appreciation for recognizing President Kagame’s efforts.
“The Distinction of Honor for African Growth Award is a recognition of President Kagames belief and hard work for a better Rwanda for all- one that is defined by resilience, unity, dignity and prosperity,” reads the petition.
“President Kagame visionary leadership and his tireless work to transform Rwanda into a dignified nation is nothing short of inspirational for Rwandans and for Africans. In only 19 years since the Genocide Against the Tutsi where one million innocent people were killed because of who they were, Rwanda has become a nation that defies all stereotypes.”