REB Director General Visits GS Butamwa: Let Sports and Cleanliness Become Our Culture

 

On the morning of Sunday, March 15, 2026, long before sunrise had warmed the hills of Nyarugenge District, students, teachers, and school leaders at GS Butamwa gathered at their sports ground with anticipation. They were about to host a guest whose presence would make this morning unlike any other — the Director General of the Rwanda Basic Education Board (REB), Dr. Nelson Mbarushimana.

Quick Facts

• Date: Sunday, March 15, 2026, early morning
• Location: GS Butamwa, Nyarugenge District, Kigali
• Guest: Dr. Nelson Mbarushimana, Director General of REB
• Activities: Group sports exercises, whole-school cleaning, and a shared breakfast
• Theme: "Fresheri ku Ishuri" (School Freshness) — a national cleanliness campaign by the Ministry of Education
• Key message: Sports and cleanliness are not optional — they are core values every Rwandan student must carry for life

A Morning of Movement: Sports at Dawn

At 6:00 a.m., with the morning air still cool and the campus buzzing with energy, the joint sports session began. Students and teachers participated together in a range of physical activities including light jogging, stretching exercises, general fitness drills, and group games designed to strengthen physical health and build camaraderie among the school community.

The Director General did not watch from a distance. Dr. Mbarushimana participated actively alongside the students, a gesture that carried a powerful message in itself — that Rwanda's most senior education official believes deeply in the value of physical activity for young people, enough to show up at dawn on a Sunday morning to practise it with them.

The sight of the REB Director General jogging and exercising alongside ordinary primary school students on a Sunday morning quickly became the defining image of the event, drawing smiles and energetic participation from every corner of the sports ground.

From the Sports Ground to the Classroom Block: The "Fresheri ku Ishuri" Cleaning Campaign

After the sports session concluded, the morning's activities shifted from physical exercise to communal responsibility. Students and teachers joined hands to clean every corner of the school compound — classrooms, playgrounds, pathways, dormitories, and common areas were all swept, scrubbed, and restored to order.

This cleaning exercise was directly tied to the national "Fresheri ku Ishuri" (School Freshness) campaign launched by Rwanda's Ministry of Education. The campaign is designed to cultivate a lasting culture of cleanliness in Rwandan schools — not as a one-off activity, but as a daily habit and a foundational value that students carry with them long after they leave school.

🏫 What Is "Fresheri ku Ishuri"?"Fresheri ku Ishuri" is a national campaign launched by Rwanda's Ministry of Education to promote cleanliness and hygiene in schools. It encourages students, teachers, and all school staff to take shared responsibility for maintaining clean learning environments — including classrooms, dormitories, kitchens, and outdoor spaces. The campaign is built on the belief that a clean school produces healthier, more focused learners, and helps prevent both communicable and non-communicable diseases caused by poor sanitation.

The rationale behind the campaign is well-grounded in public health evidence. A clean school environment directly reduces the transmission of waterborne and airborne diseases, improves student concentration, and creates the kind of dignified learning space that helps students take pride in their education. For Rwanda — a country that has made extraordinary strides in public health and education over the past two decades — embedding cleanliness as a school value is a natural extension of that broader national commitment.

Dr. Mbarushimana's Message: Words That Went Beyond the Broom

Speaking to students and staff after the activities, Dr. Mbarushimana delivered a message that was warm, direct, and clearly heartfelt. He began by thanking the students for their enthusiasm — both in the sports session and in the cleaning exercise.

"I thank you for the cleanliness you have shown today. I trust that this is not a one-day effort, but something you will continue — especially because I can already see that this school maintains cleanliness as a habit, both in terms of personal hygiene and the learning environment." — Dr. Nelson Mbarushimana, Director General, REB

He went further, asking students — both girls and boys — to pay close attention to personal hygiene: their bodies, their sleeping areas, their dining spaces, and every space they occupy within the school. He framed cleanliness not merely as a health matter, but as a reflection of character and self-respect.

"A student who maintains cleanliness shows that they have the values of self-respect and respect for others," he told the assembled students. "Those are good choices that help us build the future of Rwanda's youth."

The Director General also took the opportunity to remind the students that education is not confined to academic performance alone. A well-rounded student, he emphasised, is one who combines good academic results with good character, healthy habits, and the values necessary to become a responsible citizen.

"When you exercise, your body rests, your brain works better, and following lessons and other activities becomes easier. Let us make sports our culture." — Dr. Nelson Mbarushimana

He elaborated on the broader benefits of sport — noting that physical activity strengthens not only the body but also the mind, building resilience, confidence, teamwork, and the ability to face challenges head-on. These, he argued, are exactly the qualities Rwanda needs from its next generation of leaders.

He closed his message with a warm wish for the students ahead of their second-term examinations, expressing confidence that their commitment to both their studies and their wellbeing would bring them the results they deserved.

Breakfast Together: A Gesture That Spoke Volumes

Perhaps the most talked-about moment of the morning came after all the activities had concluded, when Dr. Mbarushimana joined students for breakfast at the school. In a country where the distance between senior officials and ordinary citizens can sometimes feel large, this simple act of sharing a meal carried enormous symbolic weight.

Students seized the opportunity not just to eat together with their guest, but to engage him in real conversation — sharing their ideas about student wellbeing, discussing their academic goals, and voicing their hopes for the second term. The relaxed, human atmosphere of the shared breakfast produced a level of genuine exchange between the Director General and the students that formal meetings rarely achieve.

For many of the students of GS Butamwa, it was likely the first time they had sat down for a meal with a national education leader — and the memory of it will probably do more for their motivation and sense of belonging within Rwanda's education system than any formal speech could.

Why Sports in Schools Matter: The Bigger Picture

The visit to GS Butamwa reflects a broader and growing national commitment to integrating sports meaningfully into Rwanda's school system — not as an afterthought, but as a core pillar of education.

President Paul Kagame has spoken on multiple occasions about Rwanda's vision for sports as a driver of national development — not only as a tool for youth health and character formation, but as a potential engine for economic growth. Through international competitions, the development of sports infrastructure, and strategic partnerships with global sporting organisations, Rwanda has been steadily positioning itself as a continental hub for sport.

At the school level, this vision translates into practical programmes — team sports competitions, general fitness activities, and inter-school tournaments designed to identify talented young athletes and give them pathways to develop. Sports in schools is increasingly understood as the pipeline through which Rwanda's future national and international athletes will emerge.

Beyond athletic talent, school sports programmes build the kind of citizens Rwanda's development agenda demands: young people who know how to collaborate, lead, lose gracefully, win humbly, and show up consistently — whether for a 6 a.m. jog or a difficult examination.

A Partnership Between Leaders and Learners

The events at GS Butamwa on March 15 were, at their heart, a demonstration of something that can sometimes be taken for granted: that Rwanda's education leaders are genuinely invested in the lives and experiences of the students they serve. Dr. Mbarushimana did not send a representative or a message — he came in person, at dawn, on a Sunday, and stayed long enough to share breakfast.

That kind of leadership — visible, participatory, and present — sends a signal to every student at GS Butamwa, and to every student in Rwanda who hears about this visit: your education matters, your health matters, your character matters, and the people leading this system are paying attention.

As Rwanda continues its remarkable educational journey, mornings like this one at GS Butamwa serve as a reminder that the foundations of a great education system are not built only in policy documents and examination halls. They are built in sports grounds at sunrise, in clean classrooms, and over shared meals where leaders and learners sit at the same table.