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"If you never leave your village you think your ideas are the best ones."
- Anonymous Abunzi, Kirehe District, Rwanda
Abunzi in Kinyarwandan means to bring two people together. The Abunzi system in Rwanda is an informal justice system at the village-level based on a traditional form of justice. There are about 32,400 Abunzi divided amongst the 2,150 cells, or villages, nationwide. Every two years each village elects fifteen new Abunzi who comprise a committee. They process 70% of the civil cases in the country. Their objective is to unite two parties who have a disagreement. Depending on the case they will either play the role of mediator or arbitrator.
Land disputes constitute 60% of the cases brought to the Abunzi. An Abunzi we interviewed in Gacuba District stated, "when people came back after the 1994 genocide land was a huge problem... Abunzi help with order and rehabilitating the country." The importance of the Abunzi system is evinced in how it assists in moving the country away from the ethnic tensions that resulted in the 1994 genocide.
We found that Abunzi typically have a hand-written archive of the arbitrated decisions. Furthermore, the Abunzi do not have access to how other Abunzi around the country make decisions when faced with similar disputes. The Abunzi we spoke with felt that a network on which to discuss best practices would supply them with the knowledge to more quickly make decisions. One Abunzi stated that such a network would facilitate a better level of service, "they're always looking for ways to ameliorate the way they work." They suggested that increased accountability in the system would lead to greater transparency and less corruption. Increasing access to the general Abunzi knowledge-pool would facilitate quicker resolution of disputes, which would help Rwandans move on more quickly with their lives and towards reconciliation.
Rwanda's Vision 2020, in which it lays out it's future goals, explains that the government's biggest goal for the country is to move it from an agricultural to a knowledge-based economy. The eGovernment project aims to assist with this goal by providing internet access to all levels of government except the Abunzi and Gacaca judicial systems. Considering how important the Abunzi are to the judicial process in Rwanda we propose a technology that will further assist in moving the country towards this goal.
Abunzi
Abunzi represent average Rwandans, 88% of whom live on USD $2 or less a day [2]. 90% of Rwandans work in the agricultural sector [3]. Rwandans are limited by 6% access to electricity [3], a 45% malnutrition rate in children age five and younger [4], and a 64.9% literacy rate [5]. The Rwandan Information Technology Authority (RITA), a government think tank charged with moving Rwanda from an agriculturally-based economy to a knowledge-based economy, expect mobile phone use to increase from 9% currently to 25% by the end of 2009. While village phone is still the most widely used phone type at 30%, mobile phones are growing at a faster rate than village phones. In Rwanda only 1% of the population uses the internet [6]. Rwandans' experience of technologies is unpredictable due to limited access to electricity, phones (mobile phone, village phones) and the internet.
Abunzi professional needs
The Abunzi we met with expressed a desire to do a better job more quickly and efficiently. They stated that they do not always have access to enough information regarding laws or knowledge of the myriad ways similar cases have been solved in other parts of the country, partly because of their limited training. They expressed a desire to learn about what other Abunzi in other parts of Rwanda were working on and how they solved cases as a way to more quickly come to a decision. Currently the only way Abunzi learn about how other towns solve problems is to travel to nearby towns and speak with Abunzi. They expressed a desire for a nationwide dialogue with their peers about the challenges and types of cases they face. They lamented their inability to travel to meet with other Abunzi. They said they would enjoy participating in such a dialogue and that they would learn a great deal from their peers. They also mentioned a desire to have increased communications with the government so that they better understand the laws that govern them.
The Abunzi we spoke with expressed a need for a professional network so as to access the wealth of knowledge and expertise of all 25,400 Abunzi. Professional networks are an invaluable and commonly utilized professional tool that people all over the world benefit from. Without access to the internet the Abunzi cannot take advantage of Web 2.0 applications, wikis, blogs and networking tools like LinkedIn. To address these concerns we are developing a technology that would equip Abunzi around Rwanda with a database of best practices that would allow them to begin a dialogue around their profession.
Technological Background |
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Due to limited availability and prohibitive cost, only 1% of Rwandans use the internet [9]. To compound this problem illiteracy further limits those with access to the internet. Users living in countries where oral traditions are strong are not usually included in a target audience because online content is typically textual. The Oral Wiki aspires to address the professional needs of Abunzi with a technological solution in step with their limited access to resources, and compatible with future migration to web-based technology.
Statistics about Rwanda
88% of Rwandans live on USD $2 or less a day
90% of Rwandans work in the agricultural sector
64.9% literacy rate
6% have access to electricity
45% malnutrition rate in children age five and younger
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