Conflict and land tenure in Rwanda

The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the historical relation between conflict and land tenure in Rwanda, a country that experienced a harsh civil war and genocide in the mid-1990s. The victory of the Tutsi-led rebel, Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) at that time triggered a massive return of refugees and a drastic change in land tenure policy. These were refugees who had fled the country at around the time of independence, in 1962, due to the political turmoil and persecution (the "social revolution") and who shared the background of the core RPF members. The social revolution had dismantled the existent Tutsi-led political order, compelling many Tutsi families to seek refuge outside their homeland. Under the post-independence rule of a Hutu-led government, the Tutsi refugees were not allowed to return and the lands they left behind were often arbitrarily distributed by local authorities among Hutu peasants. After victory in the mid-1990s civil war, the newly established RPF-led government ordered the current inhabitants of the lands to divide the properties in order to allocate portions to the Tutsi returnees. Different patterns of land holding and land division will be explained in the paper from data gathered through the authors\u27 fieldworks in the southern and eastern parts of Rwanda. Although overt resistance to land division has not been observed to date, the land rights of the Tutsi returnees must be considered unstable because their legitimacy depends primarily on the strength and political stability of the RPF-led government. If the authority of RPF were to weaken, the land rights will be jeopardized. Throughout Rwandan history, in which political exclusion has often led to serious conflict, macro-level politics have repeatedly influenced land holding. Promotion of an inclusive democracy, therefore, is indispensable to escape the vicious circle between political instability and land rights

Workplace health promotion at Rhodes University: harmful use of alcohol

Background: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are responsible for 38 million deaths annually, which translates to 68% of global deaths every year. Incidence and prevalence of NCDs are increasing rapidly and the poor bear a disproportionate burden. The increase in NCDs has been primarily due to a proliferation of modifiable risk factors, such as unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, tobacco use, and excessive alcohol consumption. Substance abuse, mainly of alcohol, is a common cause of health problems in almost all countries across the globe. Alcohol abuse is a major contributor to the global burden of diseases and accounts for 3.3 million deaths, approximately 5.9% of all global deaths, annually. Alcohol misuse is the fifth leading risk factor for premature death and disability and is the top risk factor among people between 15 and 49 years of age. The rise of harmful use of alcohol in South Africa contributes to the disease burden faced by the country, with alcohol-related disorders making up 44.6% of all alcohol-attributable disabilities. Strategies to reduce harmful use of alcohol include national policies and educational interventions including health promotion. Health promotion is a common practice in the prevention of NCDs, but workplace health promotion has not yet been well established in many workplaces. Identification of past workplace initiatives and exploring their facilitating and limiting factors is thus important to consider when planning future initiatives. Raising awareness on harmful use of alcohol through workplace health promotion projects can help to prevent and reduce alcohol-related problems. For these health promotion activities to succeed, they need to be developed with consideration of factors such as the environment, culture, and socio-economic standing of the intended target population. Method: This study, conducted at Rhodes University, followed a mixed methods research approach and consisted of two phases. The first phase of the current study was a needs assessment and involved working with the key stakeholders. Using the Community Based Participatory Research approach and the Centres for Disease Control and prevention workplace health model to guide the research, five semi-structured interviews were conducted with key stakeholders to identify factors affecting workplace health promotion, and their opinions on how to improve these initiatives were sought. The participants were asked to identify areas on which the intended intervention should focus, as well as to identify their preferred means of communicating health messages. During this phase, a group of peer educators who volunteered their involvement in the health promotion project focusing on harmful use of alcohol was also identified. The second phase of this project aimed to address concerns raised in the first phase through a health promotion initiative for support staff that focuses on the prevention of NCDs diseases through reducing alcohol related harm. During the educational health promotion phase of the study, three health information leaflets based on harmful use of alcohol were designed. These leaflets went through a series of evaluations by the researchers’ peers, support staff during a pilot study, peer educators and other health professionals to assess content validity, context specificity, and cultural appropriateness for the target group. The health information leaflets were then used as written materials in the educational intervention of the project and were also used to design a poster. Through participatory involvement, a facilitator’s manual on harmful use of alcohol was developed, which was used during the workshops in the implementation phase of the research. The facilitator’s manual was modified based on provided feedback on improving the content of the facilitator’s manual. The readability of the manual was also performed to make it suitable for the end users. The peer educators were also trained through workshops to enable them to promote and raise awareness on harmful use of alcohol to others in the workplace. Workshops were participatory in nature and were also equipped with the completed health information leaflets to distribute to their peers and to use as reference sources of information when needed. Results: Participants in the semi-structured interviews reported that some health promotion initiatives have previously been attempted and advertised to support staff, but there was poor participant participation. Peer educators reported that these initiatives were not communicated to them and venues and work commitments sometimes were barriers to participation in these projects. The peer educators suggested incentivising initiatives for better participation. Another key suggestion was to inform and to include their managers and supervisors in these initiatives so they are permitted to take time off work. Health education material like posters or leaflets were also proposed as modes of delivering health information. During the design of the material to be used for this project’s intended intervention, the health information leaflets were deemed readable, suitable, actionable, context-specific, and culturally appropriate. Workshops conducted during Phase 2 of the study proved to be valuable in training peer educators. Peer educators also deemed the workshops useful, and reported their readiness to be agents of change in the workplace. Conclusions: Based on the input of key stakeholders and peer educators, there is currently no health promotion policy at Rhodes University, especially with respect to NCDs health promotion policies and protocols for NCDs. Health promotion initiatives, especially for support staff, that address NCDs have previously been attempted at the university but were not successful. Factors affecting workplace health promotion were identified. Knowledge of these factors was useful when implementing the health promotion project on harmful use of alcohol. The health leaflets were deemed suitable for use by the target population. Peer educators who went through the workshops and were provided with the facilitators’ manuals concluded that the sessions were useful in their continued participation in the health promotion project. Continued involvement of the Wellness Office and peer educators can assist in ensuring the sustainability of this workplace health initiative

Developing and testing a culturally sensitive health information leaflet on the consequences of alcohol abuse

AbstractBackground: Alcohol consumption is one of the main modifiable risk factors that contributeto the global burden of diseases. Alcohol consumption is amongst the fast-growing non-communicable diseases commonly found in low-and middle-income countries. There is therefore a strong need to design and use health education materials that address the problem in these countries. Objectives: The objective of this study was to develop and test a context-specific and culturally sensitive health information leaflet (HIL) on the health consequences of alcohol abuse. The HIL was intended for use by support staff with limited literacy at Rhodes University. The study was conducted over a period of three months at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa. Methods: A HIL was designed using a four-draft process, and then, subjected to readability testing. The testing was carried out using seven readability formulae. This was followed by a quality and suitability assessment using the Suitability Assessment of Materials instrument and the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool. Five support staff members and nine peer educators were selected from Rhodes University to take part inthe pilot testing and focus group discussions, respectively. Convenience sampling technique was used to select the study participants.Results: The HIL obtained a readability score of grade 12. This readability score was found to be difficult to read. However, ignoringcertain medical termssuch as disease and numbness, which were thought to be familiar, enough to the participants may result in more favourable readability scores.Conclusions: The HIL obtained an average readability score of grade 12, which fell within the target range of this study. A HIL in which care about readability, cultural sensitivity, and the extent of an end-user participation has been taken may improve the reception, by the target audience, of the intended communication. This may eventually enhance the implementation of future health interventions for support staff at Rhodes University. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 2018; 32(1):46-53

REGIONAL DIFFERENCES REGARDING LAND TENANCY IN RURAL RWANDA, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO SHARECROPPING IN A COFFEE PRODUCTION AREA

This paper examines land tenancy systems and tenant contracts in Rwanda, with respect to socioeconomic contexts. Our research in southern and eastern Rwanda produced data suggesting that land borrowing with fixed rents has been generally practiced, and that rent levels have been low in comparison to expected revenues from field production. In the western areas of coffee production, however, the practice of sharecropping has recently appeared. This system is advantageous to landowners, as they are able to acquire half of the harvests; in addition, the fixed rent levels in this region are much higher than those of other regions. In the southern and eastern regions, because land borrowing with fixed rents has been the only tenancy pattern and rent levels have remained low, the economic situation should be interpreted in the context of a continuing traditional Rwandan land tenure system. In contrast, in the western coffee production area, the soaring of fixed rents and the emergence of sharecropping have been brought about by high pressures for land use, which were caused not only by a population increase but also by the development of cash crop production and the existence of a labor exchange system. The increase in rent levels has therefore been offset by a corresponding increase in agricultural productivity

Evidential implications of the use of electronic letters of credit in international trade

The law is influenced by the changing circumstances of society; hence it is never static. Likewise, the laws regarding international payment methods have been influenced by the changing circumstances and practices of merchants. However, the introduction of technology through electronic means of communication and payment has faced resistance from the courts as the law remained static. This research explores how the law has been a stumbling block to the development of electronic commerce in international trade. The payment methods in international trade have been predominantly based on traditional (paper-document) letters of credit and physical cash transfer. In many jurisdictions, paper-based letters of credit have been afforded statutory recognition for instance in areas of negotiability, but the same cannot be argued for electronic data intended to represent a letter of credit. This resulted in lack of trust in electronic transfers and fear of the risks that might come with electronic letters of credit. The main legal obstacles to full acknowledgment of electronic letters of credit are; authentication of electronic documents; lack of legal recognition by the courts due to their nature (that is, data messages) and lack of recognition in the laws of contracts (digital signatures, digital contracts), just to mention a few. This research will critically analyse the evidential implications of the use of electronic letters of credit in international trade and illustrate the functional equivalence of electronic letters of credit as to those of traditional letters of credit. This research supports the notion that if courts around the world were to embrace the advancement of technology and benefits that come with it, trade procedures will be simplified and harmonised. Ultimately, this research intends to encourage full use of electronic letters of credit, which are more efficient, accurate and saves time.Mini Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2019.Centre for Human RightsLLMUnrestricte

Conflict and Land Tenure in Rwanda

The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the historical relation between conflict and land tenure in Rwanda, a country that experienced a harsh civil war and genocide in the mid-1990s. The victory of the Tutsi-led rebel, Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) at that time triggered a massive return of refugees and a drastic change in land tenure policy. These were refugees who had fled the country at around the time of independence, in 1962, due to the political turmoil and persecution (the “social revolution”) and who shared the background of the core RPF members. The social revolution had dismantled the existent Tutsi-led political order, compelling many Tutsi families to seek refuge outside their homeland. Under the post-independence rule of a Hutu-led government, the Tutsi refugees were not allowed to return and the lands they left behind were often arbitrarily distributed by local authorities among Hutu peasants. After victory in the mid-1990s civil war, the newly established RPF-led government ordered the current inhabitants of the lands to divide the properties in order to allocate portions to the Tutsi returnees. Different patterns of land holding and land division will be explained in the paper from data gathered through the authors’ fieldworks in the southern and eastern parts of Rwanda. Although overt resistance to land division has not been observed to date, the land rights of the Tutsi returnees must be considered unstable because their legitimacy depends primarily on the strength and political stability of the RPF-led government. If the authority of RPF were to weaken, the land rights will be jeopardized. Throughout Rwandan history, in which political exclusion has often led to serious conflict, macro-level politics have repeatedly influenced land holding. Promotion of an inclusive democracy, therefore, is indispensable to escape the vicious circle between political instability and land rights

An assessment of the trade facilitation efforts within SADC: The case of Walvis Bay dry port

The study assesses the trade facilitation efforts in SADC and examines how the establishment of the Walvis Bay dry port will help in facilitating trade. Qualitative methodology was used in the study. Documentary search and in-depth interviews with key informants were used to collect data. Data was analysed by employing thematic sub-headings to present research findings. This study argued that ineffective implementation of protocols and agreements in SADC hampers or retards trade facilitation. International economic relations theories such as regionalism and liberalism guided the study. The study was guided by the assumptions proffered by these theories that larger markets can be created through integration of single economies and that this leads to improved trade volumes. Liberalisation of economies ensures free flow of goods and services. The study examines the trade facilitation measures within the SADC region and the challenges encountered in their efforts to facilitate the smooth flow of goods and services. The study revealed that the SADC region in terms of legal instruments and initiatives to promote trade facilitation is among the leading regions. However, the implementation of the same initiatives is the major obstacle to trade facilitation efforts. The SADC region provides the highest number of landlocked countries at the same time traditional ports face a number of challenges that include congestion, high port charges, and cargo safety. The Walvis Bay dry port facility sought to provide landlocked Zimbabwe with unrestricted access to the sea for her imports and exports. The study concludes that in as much as SADC is good at adopting regional protocols, implementation remains the major challenge. Effective trade facilitation efforts in the region requires an integrated approach which takes into account tariff barriers and non tariff barriers on the border as well as after the border barriers. The study however concluded that due to financial constraints to develop the dry port, similar challenges faced at traditional ports will hinder the effective operation of the dry port