MKU celebrates 13 years in Rwanda with launch of Commemorative Book

Mount Kenya University (MKU) has launched a memoir to mark its 13th anniversary in Rwanda. 

The memoir Mountain Meets Land of 1,000 Hills was launched at the university's campus in Kigali, Kagarama, on Friday Feb. 10. 

The ceremony was attended by founder and board chairman Prof. Simon Gicharu, MKU Rwanda Vice-Chancellor designate Prof. Edwin Odhuno, and Rwandan Senator Prof. Kanyarukiga Ephrem. 

Unveiling of Hotel Name 

Prof. Kanyarukiga was the chief guest. The ceremony also coincided with the unveiling the name of a four-star hotel the university is constructing in Kigali. 

Published in late 2022 Mountain Meets Land of 1,000 Hills is a coffee-table book that traces the history of MKU’s entry into Rwanda. It details the inspiration, progress, successes and challenges.

"The book catalogues a decade of remarkable and tenacious commitment to the ideals pronounced in a Ministerial document of 28th April, 2010," said Prof. Odhuno. The Ministerial document gave the university the green light to open a campus in Rwanda.   

Mountain Meets Land of 1,000 Hills also offers an inkling into the future moreso the university’s contribution to Rwanda’ Vision 2050. It also celebrates Rwanda’s rich culture and its beautiful people. It mentions some of the country’s key tourist attractions.

Overall, the book is a celebration of Rwanda’s success in higher education post the 1994 Genocide Against Tutsi period. It gives a historical account of the development of university education in the country, starting way back in 1936.

MKU Sets Tempo

In his speech, Prof. Gicharu said the book sets the tempo for higher education institutions and Africans in general to take the lead in telling African stories from an African perspective. 

"The launch of this book is a clarion call for all of us in the African continent to rise up and tell our own stories," he said. "We should not wait for outsiders, from Europe or America, or elsewhere to come and tell us stories about ourselves." 

"To the best of my knowledge, this book we are launching today is the only such book written by an institution of higher learning in Rwanda," said Prof. Kanyarukiga.

"I hope that other institutions of higher learning not only in Rwanda but the African continent will march in the footsteps of Mount Kenya University and tell their story," he added.  

Other high profile guests at the ceremony were MKU alumni Silvanus Osoro, Member of Parliament for West Murirango in Kisii County, and East Africa Legislative Assembly MP Maina Karobia. 

The upcoming hotel which will be commissioned later this year will be known as 'Kigali Paramount Hotel'. The name was competitively picked by MKUR students who received cash tokens. The Hotel, which mirrors Utalii Hotel in Kenya, will be used for demonstrative training to students from the School of Tourism and Hospitality.