The leadership of the Umwalimu SACCO Cooperative has confirmed that it has been granted another loan of 30 billion Rwf by the Rwanda Development Bank (RDB), which will continue to be used to help teachers easily find housing.
In early 2023, Umwalimu SACCO signed an agreement with BRD worth 20 billion Frw in order to continue the bank’s program called “Gira Iwawe” aimed at helping low-income people own a home.
This agreement was expected to help 1900 teachers participate in this “Gira Iwawe” program, and the number will increase as teachers become more interested in it. This number has increased significantly because so far, more than 5000 teachers have received loans through this “Gira Iwawe” program.
All this was reiterated on July 18, 2025, at the Extraordinary General Assembly that brought together members of this cooperative Umwalimu Sacco. During this meeting, members were informed that BRD had been given another 30 billion Frw, in addition to the 20 billion Frw that had been given as a loan by this bank.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Umwalimu SACCO, Gaspard Hakizimana, said that the 30 billion Rwf loan received from BRD will continue to help members of this cooperative continue to find housing without difficulty. He said, “The loan we are requesting is to help provide loans for “Gira Iwawe” which is to help members find a place to live.”
He continued to thank BRD for increasing the amount of loans intended to help teachers easily acquire housing He said, “We thank BRD because they saw that we used the first loan they gave us well and agreed to increase the amount they had given us and even decided to increase it.”To date, Umwalimu SACCO has about 160,000 members, including about 5,000 who joined in 2024 working in various educational sectors
