Sonia Rolland to premier Documentary on Rwanda’s success
Sonia Rolland
French actress and former miss France Sonia Rolland will tonight launch a documentary that features Rwanda’s progress over the past 20 years since the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi. The documentary will be premiered on France ‘0’ about 22hrs Kigali time.
Through the documentary, Rolland plans to show the strides the country has made in various aspects.
The documentary which has been awaited since it was first heard of last year will be showcased at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival, amongst other festivals according to her explanations when she held a press conference in Kigali to explain more about the documentary last year.
Sonia Rolland portrays the emerging Rwanda in her new film, exposing the fruits of Rwandans labor and political efforts by leaders as she puts it: “Rwanda, from chaos to Miraclesâ€
In her documentary, she pinpoints the image of a country too often demonized by the media and some NGOs. It indicates and emphasizes on statistics on the percentage of women in parliament (64%), the literacy rate (70%) and cover with a mutual health care insurance, the famous ‘Mutuelle de Sante’ (90%),
The actress’s focus is to illustrate the understanding of the unique reconstruction of the “new Rwanda” and the remarkable step made in the social economic development despite a history of Genocide against Tutsi that left the over a million people dead and the rest dismantled
Born in Rwanda to a French father and Rwandan mother, Sonia Rolland left Rwanda in 1989, at the age of eight, her parents moved to neighboring Burundi, where Sonia attended French course and School Theater at the French Cultural Centre.
She was crowned Miss France 2000 and has also competed at Miss Universe.She is the first African-born Miss France pageant winner.
In October 1999, Sonia Rolland won the “Miss Burgundy” beauty contest that allowed her to compete for the Miss France 2000 title and at the age of 18 she was the first woman of African descent to win. At the Miss Universe 2000 pageant, which took place in Cyprus, Rolland was a top 10 semi-finalist, placing 9th overall.
The actress acknowledges Rwandans for being at the heart of the country’s success as she says that without Rwandans, growth is not possible.
If her vision of a “stable, unified, clean, peaceful and resolutely turned towards economic development” may seem too idyllic to critics, Sonia Rolland assumes her “admiration in her well analyzed documentary.
