Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Amb. Olivier Jean Patrick Nduhungirehe, has revealed that the country earned Rwf 587 million during the 2023/2024 fiscal year from study visits by foreign delegations and the export of homegrown technological solutions to other developing nations.
He made the remarks on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, while addressing Senators during a session focused on Rwanda’s efforts to strengthen cooperation with developing countries.
The Minister cited data from the Rwanda Cooperation Initiative (RCI)—a government agency that promotes Rwanda’s homegrown solutions to other countries—as showing that since its establishment in 2018, the country has hosted 7,662 visitors from 70 nations.
“Through RCI, Rwanda has stepped up its economic diplomacy, especially with countries in the Global South,” Nduhungirehe said. “We have deployed technology projects to countries like Chad, Guinea, and Kenya, and are currently preparing to send similar initiatives to Lesotho, Eswatini, and again to Chad.”
He noted that in the 2023/2024 fiscal year alone, revenues from study tours and international project deployment amounted to Rwf 587 million.
The Minister emphasized that Rwanda’s cooperation with peer nations is turning the country into a model of governance, digital innovation, and environmental sustainability—including the ban on single-use plastics.
RCI Director General Eng. Patricie Uwase also addressed the Senate, noting that since the agency’s inception in 2018, its core mission has been to showcase how Rwanda rebuilt itself after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
“Out of the 70 countries that have approached us for cooperation, 45 are from East Africa,” Uwase said. “When we engage with them, our main message is that the solutions to development challenges already exist within Africa.”
She explained that visiting delegations are shown Rwanda’s policy choices and development path to help them understand how the country has achieved its progress. As a result, several nations have requested Rwanda’s support in replicating its success stories at home.
“In Chad, for instance, we have collaborated on technology projects and they were eager to learn how Rwanda effectively manages donor aid,” she said.
Rwanda has assisted Chad in establishing digital systems for planning and public financial management, electronic tax payment (e-Tax), and the use of Electronic Billing Machines (EBM), modeled on Rwanda’s own systems.
Minister Nduhungirehe told the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, Cooperation, and Security that partnerships with developing countries are now generating real economic returns for Rwanda.
Visitors from across the continent—including West, East, Central, and Southern Africa—have come to Rwanda to deepen bilateral ties since 2018, with 7,660 delegates recorded.
The Minister also shared that Rwanda currently has 49 embassies globally, with nearly half located in developing nations.
In response to Senators’ questions on how developing countries can overcome poverty, Nduhungirehe stressed the importance of mutual cooperation and noted that many African nations are already finding homegrown solutions to their own problems.
Eng. Uwase further disclosed that RCI is finalizing an agreement with the University of Rwanda to introduce academic programs that teach students about the country’s self-reliance journey.
“This initiative could eventually be integrated into Rwanda’s national curriculum,” she said.
She added that visiting delegations often ask how Rwanda managed to rebuild itself and achieve its current level of development, citing its environmental protection efforts, visible cleanliness in cities, and investor-friendly policies.
“When they come, we walk them through Rwanda’s development journey and explain the key decisions that got us here. That’s why some countries are now willing to collaborate with us on tech-based projects,” Uwase said.
She highlighted Chad and Eswatini as examples of countries working with Rwanda to deliver digital public services, thanks to RCI’s growing influence.
