Page 91 - Volume 2_CHANGES_merged_with links

Rwanda

Uncomfortable Truths

In Rwanda, buses are mostly of the 30-seater style minibus type. They leave on time.
Passengers have to be seated. The country is relatively small, so journeys tend to be no

longer than 3-4 hours.

And there are regular police checks. Because of the insecurity posed by neighbouring
countries such as the DRC, these checks are often to check passengers and their

belongings. A security check. But I have sat in the front seat of a minibus and watched as
a policeman carried out a thorough check not just of the driver's papers, but also of the

vehicle itself. Checking whether each of the lights was working, the windscreen

wipers...even that the seat belts were upto standard.
*****
As with bus travel, the regulation of motorbikes and motorcyclists in Rwanda is on a

completely different level to many African countries.
Travel through any sizeable settlement and you are almost certain to see a rough

piece of ground equipped with traffic cones and the like being used to train and test learner

riders. In many African countries, young people learn to ride by trial and error. And of
course there is no sense of a Highway Code in the way they ride. It's definitely not like that

in Rwanda. I have sat on a hotel terrace high above flat land leading to Lake Kivu. I have

watched as a line of perhaps 50 riders and their motorcycles is checked over by police.
*****

And the town of Gisenyi offers other insights into modern day Rwanda.
There are two border posts in the town of Gisenyi, which lie adjacent to the DRC. They

are probably not much more than 1 km apart. A bit more by road as the road takes a

couple of dog-legs.
I rented a house nearby and walked this area many times. The sights to see. Above

all, you can't miss just how busy the border crossing is. At least it is in one direction. I have

seen perhaps as many as one hundred ordinary Rwandans queuing to get their 'day pass'
that allows them to cross over into the DRC. To porter goods across or to sell goods there.

That didn't surprise so much.

My first day ever in Gisenyi, I tried to find a pharmacy. But every shop I thought from a
distance looked like a pharmacy was, in fact, a 'seed' shop. Places where local farmers

came to buy hermetically sealed large tins of seeds and the like. And agribusiness is a real
earner for the local community. Every single morning, I walked along the road that runs