Rwanda's capital bans mosques from using loudspeakers during Muslim call to prayer
Kigali has seen big changes in recent years as it positions itself as a hub for African tourism and business
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Your support makes all the difference.The Rwandan government has banned mosques from using loudspeakers during the call to prayer in the capital city Kigali.
The effort to reduce noise pollution is part of a programme of improvement called Kigali City 2040 to make it Africa’s top business and tourism powerhouse within the next 22 years.
Reforms to education, business, immigration and the landscape of the city have already altered its appearance.
Many measures have been popular, but the ban on loudspeakers – accused of disturbing residents – has been more controversial.
Muslims have largely complied with the ban but have criticised the move, saying they could have just lowered the volume.
“I have found that they have begun to respect it and it has not stopped their followers from going to pray according to their praying time,” Havuguziga Charles, a local official from Nyarugenge, told the BBC.
The efforts are not just focussed on the Muslim community. Last month around 700 churches were closed for failing to comply with building controls and for noise pollution.
The government continues its clampdown on what it deems to be substandard churches across the country citing preachers “deceiving their congregation with misleading sermons” as the primary reason, AFP reported.
The ultimate aim is to transform the country, with Kigali at its centre, into a knowledge-based middle-income country.
Technological advances remain central to the plans and the latest government project, launched in May 2016, has led to extensive fibre-optic infrastructure throughout the capital.
Public transport has also seen dramatic changes with wifi now available throughout the bus network. It is no surprise that the World Bank said Rwanda was the second easiest place on the continent to do business.
Thus far the environmental sustainability of the capital has been lauded as exemplary, with dramatic measures taken by an authoritarian government including a ban on plastic bags and mandatory community clean-ups.
Green funds have also been introduced to turn wetland into urban recreation and tourism parks.
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