The new chief executive of Rwanda Development Board (RDB), Clare Akamanzi, took office Thursday, promising to prioritise the services sector and increasing the volume of the country’s exports.

Akamanzi, who was sworn in on Wednesday, replaced Francis Gatare, who was moved to the newly created Mines, Petroleum and Gas Board – as its chief executive.

Both officials are members of the cabinet.

"I must say I’m also grateful to be back home to work on the journey of the country’s economic development,” said Akamanzi, who had previously worked at RDB in different capacities, including acting CEO.

Prior to her latest appointment last week, she was the head of Strategy and Policy Unit in the Office of the President.

"The work that the outgoing team has done has built a solid foundation and I want to work to sustain what has been achieved,” she said during the handover ceremony.

She said one of the main things she would focus on during her tenure would be to help add value to locally produced commodities.

Her other priority, she said, will be to promote innovation to help ensure that Rwanda’s journey to achieve its aspirations as a regional services hub is achieved.

Gatare, who had been at the helm of the institution since July 2014, said there’s a lot of "unfinished business” that the new team should pay attention to.

"Our mandate is to champion the economic development of our country, and this is a continuous journey. Challenges that the new team revolves around the need to achieve the target that we want to achieve, but particularly to continue mobilising the private sector to fast-track development,” he noted.

Meanwhile, the former RDB chief operations officer Serge Kamuhinda, handed over to the incoming COO, Emmanuel Hategeka.

Hategeka formerly served as the permanent secretary at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and more recently as the national coordinator of the Northern Corridor Integration projects.

"I’m so excited for this new leadership and I pledge to deliver on this not-so-simple mandate of RDB that respond to aspirations of Rwandans. The whole idea is to bring new innovations and serve beyond the expectations of our people,” said Hategeka after the hand-over.

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