“No country can sustain total development if it does not have a brain, and each country’s brain is its university”. The National University of Rwanda is committed to building an institution whose motto is ‘Excellence in Education and Service to the People.’ As it is vivid no country can develop without adequate knowledge institutions supplying relevant expertise and skills for social and economic transformation. In all successful nations, the role of the university has gone beyond the traditional missions of teaching and research.

NUR is as a matter of fact the “engine of social and economic development” in terms of innovations and the commercialization of ideas that lead to entrepreneurial activities and the formation of business enterprises. The university, above all, provides the bulk of the required skills and knowledge for the national labor market to meet both public as well as private sector demands.

In Rwanda, Vision 2020 recognizes the need for a critical mass of skills in all areas of national life. As the premier knowledge institution in Rwanda, the National University of Rwanda is repositioning itself so that it can play a developmental role and thereby assist the country to realize its vision.

The road to achieving this objective will not be easy, but the National University of Rwanda welcomes this challenge.In actual fact, the NUR is traditionally committed to excellence in education and service to the people. This entails many activities and tasks that are result-oriented at the university. Currently, the University is undergoing an institutional transformation process by focusing on capacity building and staff development so as to get up to standard.

In this regard, the National University of Rwanda decided to engage in twinning with some advanced universities and higher institutions of learning in the region as well as all over the world. By the same token, a series of activities are scheduled to take place before the end of 2012. Most activities are aimed at establishing an assessment plan which will be followed by the effective implementation of these activities.

Moreover, NUR is sending additional new candidates for doctoral and postdoctoral trainings as well as professional short courses. In line with the commitment to community service, NUR is striving to strengthen its new Directorate of Extension and Community Service. By the same token, consultancies for organizational assessment and development, twinning, language training and capacity building, gender mainstream and entrepreneurial skill development are not only buzzwords at NUR but also institutional passion.

All in all, NUR’s main target is to build ICT capacity and sustainable infrastructure that provides support to teaching, learning, research, management and community development so as to meet national, regional and global developmental challenges. With a great style NUR is accomplishing its mission: “To generate and disseminate high quality multi-disciplinary knowledge and promote effective research, skills training and community service for national competitiveness and sustainable socio-economic development ».

To wind up, my sincere gratitude goes to the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency for its cordial support to NUR research undertakings.

Prof. Silas Lwakabamba
Rector