Rwanda has donated up to $1.2 million (over Rwf1.5 billion) in support of relief efforts by Caribbean countries hit by Hurricane Beryl in late June and early July.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the government allocated $300,000 to each of four affected Caribbean nations, namely Grenada, Jamaica, Barbados and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

"Rwanda has answered the call for solidarity by the Commonwealth Secretary General in support to Commonwealth countries affected by Hurricane Beryl,” the ministry said in a statement on Monday, August 26.

"In this regard, a total of 1,200,000 US dollars has been disbursed to Grenada, Jamaica, Barbados as well as St. Vincent and the Grenadines.”

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Rwanda became a member of the Commonwealth in 2009. President Paul Kagame was elected the Commonwealth Chair-in-Office in June 2022, a position he held until in March 2024.

This announcement follows Rwanda’s donation of 2000 tons of maize in July to Zimbabwe and Zambia, which were hit by extreme droughts.

"Rwanda remains ready to support, within its means, global solidarity efforts for countries affected by natural disasters and extreme weather events, as it has done in the past in the region and beyond,” the foreign ministry said.

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Hurricane Beryl, a Category 5 Atlantic storm, struck the coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico, the Gulf Coast of the United States and several Caribbean nations.

With winds reaching up to 150 miles per hour, Hurricane Beryl left a trail of devastation, claiming lives and causing billions of dollars’ worth of damages.

It is considered one of the most devastating storms in this region since Hurricane Dean in 2007.