Welcome to

RWANDAN SIGN LANGUAGE BIBLE TRANSLATION SOCIETY

RSLBTS

Rwandan Sign Language Bible Translation Society is a non-denominational Organization that is not only for  Deaf Bible Distributors or Deaf Bible Advocates but also helps the churches achieve their role in evangelism work and nurturing their members.

WHY WE TRANSLATE THE DEAF BIBLE

Education for Deaf people in Rwanda is very inadequate. There are only eight Deaf schools in the whole country and these do not have qualified teachers. These teachers do not know Rwandan Sign Language  as well as deaf cultures and beliefs .  Thus the teachers and the schools are not equipped to teach Deaf children effectively.  In addition there are no secondary schools for Deaf children in the  whole country.  When Deaf children finish primary level many of them have not reached the same intellectual development as hearing children of the same age hence contributing a number of deaf illiterate in the country to master the written English commands and kinyarwanda.

A word from the project Manager – Ms. NYIRAMANA Joyce

We greet you in Jesus’ name 

We thank the deaf Christian community across the denomination Christian in the country, the donor DBS, the impact partners, and the Government of Rwanda for the continuous efforts to ensure Rwandan Sign Language Bible Translation Society’s translation goals and mission are realized.

Rwandan Sign Language Bible Translation Society (RSLBTS)  has been in existence since 2009 however it came into active services in 2019 with a primary program intervention focusing on; translating holy scriptures from Kinyarwanda to Rwandan sign language, Training sign language Translators actors in Biblical translation programs, establishing a learning center for early childhood development programs targeting the deaf communities, developing and offering a need-based short course to the deaf in the sector of life skills, careers and also to offer services for solving problems regarding family and community purposely to enable the deaf community to participate fully in the religious and education services to acquire enhanced quality participation in the society and service deliveries. With a holistic spirit, we appreciate the Deaf Bible Society (DBS) donor partner and local partners for providing reasonable resources that enabled us to translate 32 Chronological Bible translations, translated 1,401 Holy Scripture Bible verses, trained 300 deaf community in sign language, and establish a deaf Fellowship ministry that saw the birth of 10 branches in the city of Kigali and outside Kigali- Rwanda. God bless us for these beautiful achievements

With God’s presence, Rwandan sign language Bible Translation Society (RSLBTS) managed to implement her program leading us to accomplish his calls to transform the lives of the deaf Christians and denominational Christians in the country through Sign Language Bible translation work. At the helm of improving service deliveries that impact the lives of deaf Christians, RSLBTS has observed the outcomes below but not limited

  1. The translation project is offering a positive impact on the lives of the Deaf community, local churches, deaf schools, parents of deaf people, and the community around them.

  2. Accessing the Holy Scriptures by Deaf Christians/individuals has greatly improved with the availability of CBT video stories on the DBS APP, social media, and fellowship programs

  3. RSLBTS is increasing social inclusion in the community through collaborating with other stakeholders like the Bible Society of Rwanda (DBS) and information dissemination through mass media such as television talks leading to the acceptance of the Deaf people by the general community.

 In addition, we have recorded many success stories from the direct and indirect beneficiaries of the Sign Language Bible translation journey, where many of them are living examples of the faithful work being done for them. This was achieved because of the contributions from our donors, impact partners, local churches, collaborators, stakeholders, and deaf individuals.  However many challenges remain unattended such as sign language communication which remains a core communication barrier in the lives of the deaf community, insufficient funding for continuous Biblical translation supporting the deaf local churches with resourcefulness, etc.

It is our humble prayer and call that God will touch our hearts to have the compassion to support  Rwandan Sign Language Bible Translation project so that it reaches the Deaf Christians across the country to help them enjoy the spiritual life in Christ Jesus.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2025.