The dates for the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) Dakar 2026 have been decided today. The first Olympic event to be held on the African continent will officially start on 31 October 2026, with an Opening Ceremony on the first day of competition, and will last until 13 November.
Following the decision to postpone the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar from 2022 to 2026, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (YOGOC) and all concerned stakeholders evaluated the potential Games dates.
The 14-day YOG period was proposed to the IOC EB following an extensive assessment factoring in school and university times to best suit the athletes’ school curriculum, meteorological conditions and other international sports events and celebrations. Dakar 2026 will coincide with Africa Youth Day (1 November), which is an important celebration in Senegal allowing school pupils more time to participate in and contribute to the YOG.
Further work and analysis of the YOG schedule will be done in relation to the capacity of the YOG Villages and the Athlete Education Programme. Work on optimising the sports programme is also underway, for which consultations have been taking place with the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) and the International Sports Federations (IFs).
“Article of the International Olympic Committee – All Rights Reserved”
The Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association (Rwanda CGA) in collaboration with the Commonwealth Sports Foundation (CSF) through the Commonwealth Sport (CGF) is offering a 12-month placement opportunity and the internship will take place at the Rwanda CGA offices in Kigali city.
The placement will appeal to candidates with a strong background in Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
This internship is part of the eqUIP program which is an initiative of the Commonwealth Sport Foundation (CSF) that runs in partnership with various universities in the 6 continental regions of the Commonwealth.
To apply, please send your CV, bachelor’s degree and motivation letter to [email protected] with a copy to [email protected] (mandatory) and applications will close at 05:00pm on 09thDecember 2022. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
For more details about this opportunity, click here.
Note: the subject of the application email must be eqUIP Team 15 Application.
The Rwanda National Olympic and Sports Committee (RNOSC)/Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association (Rwanda CGA) has released the Quarterly Newsletter of April to June 2022.
“In the last three months, we implemented various sports activities including the celebration of the Olympic Day 2022, fostering gender equality by organizing “Smart Women – Smart Sport” workshop, in collaboration with the Ministry of Sports and National Sports Federations and we also successfully organized the Genocide Memorial Tournaments 2022 (GMT 2022) for Kwibuka 28 to name few”, said the RNOSC/RCGA President Theo UWAYO.
The Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association in collaboration with the Commonwealth Sports Foundation is offering 12 months placement opportunity starting from February 2021.
The placement will appeal to the candidates who have studied Physical Education and Sports, Business Information Technology, Information Technology, Business Administration and representing a high interest in sport.
This internship is part of the eqUIP program which is an initiative of the Commonwealth Sport foundation (CSF) that runs in partnership with various bronchial asthma in children in the 6 continental regions of the Commonwealth.
Please send your resume and cover letter by 11 January 2021 before 12:00 PM to [email protected] with copy to [email protected] (mandatory).
The Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association is offering an internship opportunity for 12 months to the candidates who hold a bachelor degree in Physical Education and Sports, Business Information Technology, Information Technology or Business Administration with a high interest in sport.
Please share this information with your Federations/Association/Schools eligible members interested with the program.
For further details about this opportunity, download pdf format here or visit our office from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm from Monday to Friday. The Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association is located at Amahoro National Stadium, gate no 05.
The application deadline is fixed on 20th December 2019 at 12:00 pm.
President Paul Kagame on Tuesday officially invited world leaders to the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) which will be hosted in Rwanda in June next year.
In a video message, President Paul Kagame and Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland announced that CHOGM 2020 will be held at the Kigali Convention Centre during the week starting June 22, around the theme ‘Delivering A Common Future: Connecting, Innovating, Transforming’.
President Kagame said it will be a great pleasure to welcome leaders of the Commonwealth when they gather in Kigali, highlighting that Rwanda will work hard to make everybody feel Rwanda is an extension of their home.
Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 53 independent and equal sovereign states and all Heads of State for these countries are expected to attend.
Kagame particularly indicated that the unique tenor of the CHOGM 2020 will be the focus on youth empowerment, especially through leveraging technology.
“The distinctive aspect of CHOGM 2020 will be connectivity including what young people can do with technology to create vibrant societies and develop our economies,” he noted in a video posted on Tuesday evening.
The Head of State made case for the youth and argued that it was important to look at them as an important and productive asset to transform economies across the world.
“There is no way we can see our young people as a liability. For a very clear reason, they are a huge asset and opportunity. Seeing them as liability would be a failure on our part,” he noted.
Creating the kind of environment that adds a lot of value to this asset of young people, he added, would be done through the provision of skills, access to technology and having them get involved more in value chains across the world.
According to the statement from the Secretariat, five sub-themes have been identified for discussion: Governance and Rule of Law, ICT & Innovation, Youth, Environment, and Trade.
The Commonwealth is a political organization most of whom are former colonies of Britain.
Rwanda, which joined the grouping in November 2009, is one of only two Commonwealth member countries with no colonial ties with the United Kingdom – the other being Mozambique.
The Commonwealth is home to 2.4 billion people and includes both advanced economies and developing countries.
Building on progress since CHOGM 2018 in London, leaders are expected to discuss ways the contemporary Commonwealth can transform societies, in accordance with Commonwealth Charter values of democracy, multilateralism, sustainable development, and empowerment of women and youth.
Secretary-General Scotland stated: “I think the youth demographic we have now is a real opportunity. It’s going to be a very exciting chance for us to enable our young people to develop and deploy the skills they need so they can fulfil their potential.
“By connecting, innovating and transforming, the Commonwealth opens up scope for mobilising the talent of people of all ages and backgrounds.”
As well as the meeting of heads of government, the week will include a meeting of foreign ministers and forums to engage young people, civil society, women and the business community.
On Monday, 11th March 2019, The Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association celebrated the Commonwealth Day 2019 at G.S Camp Kigali.
Group Photo after Commonwealth Day 2019 Celebration.
Commonwealth Day is celebrated every year on March 2, but in Rwanda, they marked the day on March 11, 2019 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the modern Commonwealth, under the theme, “ A Connected Commonwealth”
The Commonwealth is a voluntary Association of 53 independent and equal sovereign states. It is home to 2.2 billion citizens, of which over 60% are under the age of 30.
Around 3000 students from G.S Camp Kigali who took part in a broad range of activities, including debates, essay, and Table Tennis competitions attended the occasion.
Guest of honour UK Commissioner to Rwanda Jo Lamos reminded the students that 60% in the Commonwealth youth are under the age of 30 years.
Addressing the gathering, Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association Vice President, Felicite Rwemarika, said, “This event is a partnership with the Commonwealth family and the aim is to work together. It is important for the youth because sports create relationship and mutual friendship with others.”
The Table Tennis Federation (RTTF) used the occasion to introduce the sport to the school and donated brand new playing kits which include a brand new table, ball, and playing bats.
RTTF President Jean Bosco Birungi said “This was the first time to partner with the Rwanda-CGA, it is an opportunity to expand the sport because we signed an agreement with G.S Camp Kigali School to promote the Table Tennis,” he said.
Jean Dieudonne Niyonsenga, the headmaster of the school expressed gratitude to the UK Commission, the Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association and Table Tennis Federation for bringing the celebration to the school.
The school is composed of a nursery, primary and secondary school with over 3,380 students on top of 108 staff.
Rwanda will host the 2019 CGF General Assembly in early September and the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), to be held in 2020, with over 7,000 delegates expected to attend the summit.
Read the Commonwealth Day Message by Her Majesty The Queen, Head of the Commonwealth: click here.
The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) announced today (5 October 2018) that Rwanda will host the 2019 CGF General Assembly and Strategic Forum. The General Assembly, which brings together sports leaders from all 71 nations and territories of the Commonwealth, will be held in the capital city Kigali from 3-6 September 2019*. It marks the ten-year anniversary of Rwanda joining the list of Commonwealth nations in 2009, and takes place a year before Rwanda hosts the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in 2020.
Commonwealth Games Federation President Louise Martin CBE said:
Rwanda’s membership of the Commonwealth is unique and we welcome this opportunity to celebrate and engage with the youngest member of our sporting family. They submitted an ambitious, strategic hosting proposal – and see the General Assembly as an important stepping stone for CHOGM 2020.
Rwanda is an inspiring country with passionate, proactive sports leadership – and we all look forward to ensuring a socially impactful legacy for Rwanda and the host CGA around the shared values and ambitions of Commonwealth Sport.”
Rwanda Commonwealth Games Association President Amb. Valens Munyabagisha said:
“We are truly honoured to be selected to host the 2019 CGF General Assembly. We want to leverage this important event to build the profile of Rwanda and the wider Commonwealth and also contribute to our shared sporting, social and economic development. Our athletes and team will be the proudest of hosts – warmly welcoming the Commonwealth sporting fraternity to Kigali next September.
Rwanda is increasingly becoming a destination of choice for international meetings, and delegates will see how the Capital City of Kigali has come of age: the heart of the emerging Rwandan economy and a pride of every Rwandan.”
The General Assembly will take place in the flagship US$ 300 million Kigali Convention Centre (KCC) which opened in 2016. Key agenda items for the 2019 General Assembly will be the quadrennial CGF elections, continued evolution of the CGF’s Governance and Regulations and the approval of a refreshed Transformation 2022 strategy.
Rwanda hosted the Gold Coast 2018 Queen’s Baton Relay from 22 to 25 March 2017, taking the opportunity to focus on the nation’s past, present and future.
Rwanda made their Commonwealth Games debut at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, taking part in Athletics, Boxing, Road Cycling and Swimming. They won their first ever Games medal at the Bahamas 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games – winning Bronze in Women’s Beach Volleyball.
Bronze medalists Valentine Munezero and Penelope Musabyimana of Rwanda pose after the medal presentation for the girl’s beach volleyball at the Bahamas 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games on July 22, 2017 in Nassau, Bahamas
During the 2018 Commonwealth Games on Australia’s Gold Coast, all the Commonwealth Countries observed one minute’s silence to pay respect to the Tutsi killed in the 1994 Genocide. President Valens Munyabagisha continued: “Hosting this meeting will also be an important occasion for the Commonwealth Family to see with their own eyes what they were commemorating at the time. It will demonstrate how we can all pull together to inspire each other – and especially our young people – to uphold the CGF values of Humanity, Equality and Destiny.”
Rwanda – known as the Land of a Thousand Hills, and home to one third of the world’s population of remaining mountain gorillas – is the newest member of the Commonwealth, and the second country (alongside Mozambique) in the Commonwealth without historic UK ties. They are a global leader in Gender Equality – becoming the first nation in the world to elect a majority of women MPs and continuing to hold the largest percentage of women in parliament in the world, which stands at 64% today.
It will be the second General Assembly to be held on the African continent this decade, with Kampala, Uganda hosting the meeting in 2012.
