President Paul Kagame, yesterday, received letters of credence from five new diplomatic envoys accredited to Rwanda, at Village Urugwiro in Kigali.

The five envoys are Guy Itou of the Republic of Congo, Bruce Rata Shepherd of New Zealand with residence in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Susan Eckey of Norway with residence in Kampala, Takayuki Miyashita of Japan, and Abdoul Wahab Haidara of Senegal with residence in Nairobi.

The envoys to Rwanda committed to strengthening relations between their respective countries and Rwanda, with particular focus on economic, political and security ties.

Amb. Haidara said he comes "to consolidate already thriving bilateral ties between Rwanda and Senegal, and continue the good relationship between our two Heads of State—which will definitely involve a number of economic projects.”

Miyashita said Japan and Rwanda have strong ties and the new emphasis will be about working together to boost Rwanda’s infrastructure and energy sectors.

The Japanese envoy said a new agreement is to be signed this week, by the Japanese envoy and the government of Rwanda—to finance the construction of Rusumo-Kayonza highway, worth about $68 million.

Deliberations on regional security

Norway’s Eckey said apart from discussing investment opportunities in Rwanda, specifically in energy sector—for the Norwegian investors—she and President Kagame also talked about issues of regional insecurity.

"I extended my sympathy to President Kagame, on the shooting of the Rwandan peacekeepers in South Sudan, and congratulated Rwanda for being at the forefront of ensuring peace and security in the region,” she told journalists referring to two Rwandan peacekeepers who sustained minor injuries during attacks last week.

New Zealand’s Shepherd reiterated that, through a "very strong working relationship” between the two countries at the Unite Nations, they would work together in restoring peace in the region. 

"New Zealand is a member of the Security Council at the moment, and Rwanda was a strong vehicle of our candidacy to join the Security Council. I hope that Rwanda can be an avenue to bring peace in South Sudan and in the entire Great Lakes region,” said Shepherd.

"New Zealand has very large development projects here in Rwanda, and I am also looking to strengthening trade ties between New Zealand and Rwanda. I also asked President Kagame if he could create time to visit my country.” 

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