Nthomeng Majara, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs of the Kingdom of Lesotho, has highlighted that her delegation's visit to Rwanda is primarily a study tour to learn from the country's successful programmes.
This comes shortly after the two countries on October 4 signed a general cooperation agreement on the establishment of a Joint Bilateral Commission. The signing ceremony was witnessed by Prime Minister Samuel Matekane of the Kingdom of Lesotho and Rwanda&039;s Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente during the 58th independence anniversary celebrations in Maseru, Lesotho.
"We have come here to learn about many of the programmes Rwanda has in place. It is renowned for its good governance strategies, accountability, performance management, Irembo platform, Umuganda, and so on. As a new government, there is so much for us to learn,” she said.
Majara said this on October 22 after a meeting with Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente in Kigali. Their discussions focused on strengthening the existing cooperation between Rwanda and Lesotho.
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"We are relatively new in government. The current Prime Minister of Lesotho was never a politician before; he comes from the business community. He called upon business leaders and professionals from the civil service to form a new party, as Lesotho felt it was time for a fresh approach. We came into office unprepared, having founded the party in March, and by October, we were in government,” Majara explained.
She acknowledged their lack of experience in running a government but noted that the existing strong relations with Rwanda made it the ideal place for them to learn from.
"Rwanda is a shining example, not just in Africa, but globally, for its remarkable programmes—especially considering its tragic past. The country has done incredibly well. This visit is part of a broader study programme for our delegation. We are the second cohort to come,” she added.
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Majara also shared that a few months ago, another delegation of government ministers from Lesotho visited Rwanda on a similar mission. "In January, we will be sending yet another team, and the goal is to have all cabinet ministers exposed to this programme.”
On future collaboration between Rwanda and Lesotho, Majara emphasized the importance of exchanging ideas and building upon the strong relations between the two nations, providing mutual support in various areas.
"We are both landlocked countries, and we can learn a lot from each other on navigating the challenges posed by our geographic and political situations,” she said.
Majara said that her conversation with Ngirente touched on learning about good governance, accountability, performance management systems, environmental governance, peace and cohesion, youth empowerment, and much more.
"There is a vast menu of programmes we are going to learn about,” she concluded.