Ruhango District has recognised outstanding village leaders, cell and sector executive secretaries for exceptional performance in improving service delivery, security and community welfare, following a six-month performance assessment covering July–December 2025.
A total of 50 local leaders, including 38 village leaders, six cell executive secretaries and six sector executive secretaries, were rewarded by the Southern Province administration after outperforming their peers across key governance and social indicators.
According to provincial and district authorities, the assessment focused on school attendance, maternal health, community security, control of illegal activities and citizen mobilisation, areas where the top-performing leaders recorded measurable progress.
Kagarama Village in Mwendo Sector and Kabungo Village in Mbuye Sector emerged as the best-performing villages in the district.
Speaking after the award ceremony, Francine Niyomufasha, village leader of Kagarama, attributed her success to strict follow-up on education, health and security.
“All children are in school, all mothers deliver at health facilities, and community security remains our top priority,” she said.
In Kabagari Sector, Innocent Ndahayo, village leader of Ruyogoro, highlighted firm action against illegal mining as a key achievement.
“Illegal mining often involves powerful individuals with money, but through community-led measures, we eliminated the practice completely. No one dares return,” he said.
Ruhango District mayor Valens Habarurema said the performance-based recognition system is already delivering results, citing improved district-wide indicators.
“Our objective is to boost motivation and accountability. Almost all performance indicators have improved. For the first time, Ruhango has achieved 100 percent coverage in community-based health insurance, up from 98 percent before this initiative,” Habarurema said.
The awarded leaders received certificates of merit and a cash prize of Rwf 50,000, while top performers were also given bicycles, reinforcing the district’s strategy of incentivising results-driven local governance.
