Rwanda

Rwandan students are required to begin school at age seven. Both primary and secondary school are six years in length. The academic year is centrally determined and lasts from September to July. Entry into secondary school is by examination and most primary school students do not continue on to secondary school. Rwandan families are required to pay school fees and to purchase uniforms to enroll their children, but the government routinely waives fees for orphans.

International organizations have been influential in Rwandan education since the Germans and Belgians colonized the area. Religious and private schools have been active since colonization and remain significant today. Since 1995, international aid agencies, foreign governments, and international financial institutions have been actively involved in reconstructing the education system.