A Rwandan art exhibition featuring six Rwandan artists was officially opened on March 21, 2012 in the Parliament buildings of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. With more than 100 guests, among them ministers and members of the parliament, the event also marked the start of the festivities for the 30th anniversary of the partnership between Rwanda and Rhineland-Palatinate. The guests had the opportunity to visit the exhibition and buy the artworks. The key note speakers at the launch of the event were the Minister President of Rhineland-Palatinate, Kurt Beck, the President of the State Parliament, Joachim Mertens as well as the Rwandan Ambassador to Germany, Christine Nkulikiyinka.They all emphasised the importance of strengthening the partnership between Rhineland-Palatinate and Rwanda. The frequent exchange programmes between the people of Rwanda and Rhineland-Palatinate was singled out as one of the main achievements of the partnership. The motto of the 30th anniversary of the partnership is "Youth and Culture”.Ambassador Nkulikiyinka said that the youth plays a crucial role in Rwanda’s development. She explained that investing in the youth means an investment into the future, emphasizing that cultural awareness ought to go hand in hand with innovation. "We do not only want that the youth to identify with our culture, but we wish that they keep it and carry it on. For, we have seen that the remarkable success of many programmes that we carried out in the past years can be attributed to our traditional values and ways of solidarity in the Rwandan society.” The artists will tour Rhineland-Palatinate until the end of March. During their stay in Rwanda’s partner state, they will meet partnership associations as well as their German counterparts. The exhibition will go on until April 5, 2012.