An introduction to Rwanda's challenges & successful interventions

The millenium village project

The Millenium Village Tour in Rwanda is the most frequented community project excursion in Rwanda to date and remains Our Flagship tour. The eye opening day trip to the Rwandan Millennium Village in Mayange is a unique excursion that introduces the country’s development challenges and the successful interventions of the world’s most famous development initiative, the UN Millennium Villages Project. The community members present their experiences with the interventions, focusing, among others, on agriculture, education, health care, infrastructure and micro-enterprise development. On a rotating basis, over 200 members of the newly founded Rwanda Nziza Tourism Cooperative are directly involved.

The most common form of the Millennium Village Tour is a one-day excursion. Stations include a welcome at the MVP headquarters in Nyamata, a visit to the nearby genocide memorial, several agricultural intervention stops, visits to the Mayange B primary school and the Mayange Health Center, lunch provided by a women’s cooperative in Mbyo, a basket weaving experience and finally a traditional 'ubusabane' a local get-together with cultural interaction, food and drinks, and testimonies of community members. Variations of this excursion are possible both with regards to the content and the required time.

A fixed percentage of the benefits go to a Community Development Fund which is jointly managed by the Tourism Cooperative and NDA. By the end of the year, the people of Humure and Ramiro can decide in a democratic way how to best use this money, with NDA and the Tourism Cooperative keeping a veto right.

Visitors are further encouraged to buy locally made products. Benefits of these sales also accrue to the Community Development Fund. Find out more about The U.N Millenium Village Project or how you can experience The Millenium Village Tour