Rwanda
Ministerial Order determining Additional Requirements for Registration and Renewal of Certificate of Registration of an International Non-Governmental Organization
Ministerial Order 6 of 2015
- Published in Official Gazette 15 on 13 April 2015
- Assented to on 19 March 2015
- Commenced on 13 April 2015
- [This is the version of this document from 13 April 2015.]
Chapter One
General provisions
Article One – Purpose of this Order
This Order shall determine additional requirements for registration and renewal of certificate of registration of an International non-governmental organization.Article 2 – Definitions
In this Order, the following terms shall have the following meanings:1.international non-governmental organization: organisation established in accordance with foreign laws and the objectives of which are related to public interest;2.competent authority: Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration;3.certificate: document issued by the competent authority certifying that an international non-governmental organisation is registered;4.Director General: Head of the Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration;5.Minister: Minister in charge immigration and emigration;6.line ministry: ministry in charge of activities of an international non-governmental organization wishing to operate in Rwanda.Chapter II
Additional requirements for registration and renewal of certificate of registration of an international non-governmental organization
Article 3 – Additional requirements for registration
Without prejudice to the provisions of Law n° 05/2012 of 17/02/2012 governing the organization and functioning of international non-governmental organizations, a non-governmental organization applying for registration shall present the following documents:1.an application letter addressed to the Director General;2.recommendation letter or memorandum of understanding indicating the applied period from the partnering Line Ministry;3.signed proof of funding from the donor or financial support commitment from the international non-governmental organization international head office;4.an approval issued by competent District official certifying that the action plan of an international non-governmental organization is aligned with the District's action plan;5.a detailed annual budget showing cost of administrative and developmental activities;6.an organizational structure of the international non-governmental organization in Rwanda;7.strategic plan of activities agreed with the line Ministry;8.curriculum vitae of its prospect representative who shall be a holder of at least a bachelor degree or equivalent and at least three (3) years relevant working experience unless the competent authority deems that the candidate has other relevant skills;9.its internal rules and regulations.Article 4 – Additional requirements for renewal of registration certificate
Without prejudice to the requirements for renewal of the registration certificate provided for under Article 12 of the Law n° 05/2012 of 17/02/2012 governing the organization and functioning of international non-governmental organizations, an international non-governmental organization desiring to renew its registration certificate shall in addition to the requirements provided for in Article 3 of this Order, submit its activity report basing on the action plan that was presented.Article 5 – Name of an international non-governmental organisation
An international non-governmental organization desiring to be registered shall be required to have its specific name.Article 6 – Requirements for registration of change of name
A change of name shall be declared to the competent authority and shall be registered within thirty (30) days following the date of the change.An international non-governmental organization desiring to register the change of name shall present the following documents:1.a letter addressed to the Director General informing him/her of the change of name;2.a notarized copy of the article of association from the international non-governmental organization head office, mentioning the new name;3.approval from Rwanda Revenue Authority, Rwanda Social Security Board and the Ministry of Public Service and Labour;4.the existing registration certificate;5.publish the organisation's new name in at least two (2) most read newspapers in Rwanda.Chapter III
Miscellaneous, transitional and final provisions
Article 7 – Starting of activities
An international non-governmental organization duly registered shall start its activities not later than four (4) months following the date it was granted a certificate of registration.An international non-governmental organization failing to respect such period provided under Paragraph One of this Article may be subjected to one of the following sanctions:1.written warning;2.revocation of the certificate of registration.International non-governmental organization that starts its activities before registration or operating without renewing its certificate of registration shall be considered operating illegally. Its activities are immediately suspended.Article 8 – Annual reports
An international non-governmental organization shall submit an annual report of activities basing on the action plan presented to concerned Government institutions.Upon assessment of the report, if it is proved that the international non-governmental organization failed to implement its action plan presented to the concerned Government institutions without justification, the competent authority may take against it one of the following sanctions:1.written warning2.temporary suspension for a period not exceeding three (3) months;3.definitive suspension.Article 9 – Prohibitions in the operations of the international non-governmental organization
An international non-governmental organization is prohibited from the following:1.changing its core mandate;2.forming a local non-governmental organization having a similar name;3.changing its organizational structure without the consultation of the competent authority;4.being represented by a representative of another organization in Rwanda;5.engaging in commercial activities, except after consultation and approval of the competent authority.An international non-governmental organization that commits any of the prohibitions provided for in Paragraph One of this Article shall be subjected to sanctions provided for in Article 8 of this Order.Article 10 – Validity of registration certificate
The validity of the certificate of registration shall be up to five (5) years. It shall be issued depending on the assessment made by the competent authority on the International non-governmental organization's action plan and its budget.The validity of the issued certificate may be reduced as a result of the international non-governmental organization's low performance in the annual evaluation.An international non-governmental organization is entitled to be informed on grounds that led the competent authority to reduce the validity of its certificate or to issue a shorter registration period than what was applied for.Article 11 – Collaboration with other entities or organizations
An international non-governmental organization is encouraged to collaborate with other entities or international non-governmental organizations doing similar activities.The competent authority may consult the entities or organizations referred to in Paragraph One in registration of the organisation, monitoring and evaluation of its activities whenever deemed necessary.Article 12 – Collaboration of international non-governmental organizations with line ministry
Working relations between line ministry and international non-governmental organizations desiring to operate in Rwanda for the issuance of recommendation letter or memorandum of understanding provided for in Article 3 of this Order shall be established by the competent authority.Article 13 – Transitional provision
An organization already operating at the time this Order comes into force shall continue to operate until its certificate of registration expires.Article 14 – Commencement
This Order shall come into force on the date of its publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Rwanda.History of this document
13 April 2015 this version
Commenced
19 March 2015
Assented to