<div dir="ltr"><h1>Rwanda: Local Traders Advised to Be Multilingual<a class="" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Fallafrica.com%2Fstories%2F201411180804.html&title=allAfrica.com%3A%20Rwanda%3A%20Local%20Traders%20Advised%20to%20Be%20Multilingual&description=allAfrica%3A%20African%20news%20and%20information%20for%20a%20global%20audience"><div class=""><span class=""></span><span class=""><br></span></div>
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<cite class="">By Theogene Nsengimana</cite><p>The
Private Sector Federation (PSF) has called upon the business community,
especially those involved in cross-border trade to learn English and
Swahili to be competitive in the region.</p>
<p>Donatien Mungwararera, the PSF director for member services, capacity
building and entrepreneurship promotion, said some Rwandan contractors
have failed to win lucrative tenders because "they did not understand
the bid documents written in English".</p>
<p>"Though we carryout periodic trainings in languages, we do not reach
everyone. So, individual traders should take an initiative to learn the
most commonly spoken languages in the region, especially English and
Swahili, to enhance their competitiveness," he advised.</p>
<p>Rwanda changed its official language from French to English about
seven years ago, and most local business owners do not know or
understand Swahili, a regional language.</p>
<p>Rwanda and Burundi joined the EAC in 2009. The other three EAC member states - Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania use English.</p>
<p>According to Rwanda's 2013 Manpower Survey, most Rwanda business people do not understand English and Swahili.</p>
<p>The report indicates that traders who use English and Swahili are
about 11.1 per cent and 12.8 per cent of the business community,
respectively.</p>
<p>The report released mid this year emphasises that this has put
Rwandans at a disadvantage when competing for business with Kenyans and
Ugandans.</p>
<p>Enock Kamugisha, a local supplier of construction materials, said he
has failed to win tenders four times "because I did not understand all
the requirements in the bid documents due to my limited proficiency in
English language".</p>
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<p>"Bids are drafted in English; and there are many technical terms that
we fail to understand. If you do not understand the bid document, you
cannot fill it properly to meet all the requirements," said Kamugisha.</p>
<p>He added that contractors do not want to hire lawyers to help, saying that would mean an extra cost they cannot afford.</p>
<p>Narcisse Ngezahayo, a Kigali-based maize dealer, with different
branches in Bujumbura (Burundi) Musanze (Rwanda) and in Uganda, said he
uses an interpreter.</p>
<p>"I am a Senior Six leaver, and during our time, French was the medium
of instruction. Since English is the most used language in business
within the East African Community, I hired someone to handle clients who
use languages other than Kinyarwanda and French," said Ngezahayo in an
interview with Business Times.</p>
<p>EAC Affairs ministry intervenes</p>
<p>The Ministry of East African Community Affairs says that a language
policy was developed to help ease language barriers faced by Rwandans
while interacting with their counterparts in the community.</p>
<p>"We have a policy that aims at teaching Swahili from lower secondary
education. The policy is already being implemented by the Ministry of
Education," said Jean Pierre Niyitegeka, the director of social
development centre at the ministry.</p>
<p>Also, the Ministry of Trade and Industry conducts language (English
and Swahili) lessons throughout the year, said Emmanuel Hategeka, the
permanent secretary.</p>
<p>He however urged Rwandan traders not to limit their chances because
of a 'perceived' language barrier. He argued that the only hindrance
should be money or expertise but not language barrier.</p><p><a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201411180804.html">http://allafrica.com/stories/201411180804.html</a><br></p><p><br></p><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">**************************************<br>N.b.: Listing on the lgpolicy-list is merely intended as a service to its members<br>and implies neither approval, confirmation nor agreement by the owner or sponsor of the list as to the veracity of a message's contents. Members who disagree with a message are encouraged to post a rebuttal, and to write directly to the original sender of any offensive message. A copy of this may be forwarded to this list as well. (H. Schiffman, Moderator)<br><br>For more information about the lgpolicy-list, go to <a href="https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/">https://groups.sas.upenn.edu/mailman/</a><br>listinfo/lgpolicy-list<br>*******************************************</div>
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