The newly appointed Cabinet will take their oath of office on Monday, August 19, marking the beginning of the work of government in President Paul Kagame’s next five-year term. Appointed by Kagame on Friday, the Cabinet will be sworn in a week after Edouard Ngirente was reappointed as Prime Minister. ALSO READ: Who are the new faces in Rwanda’s cabinet? Most of the ministers who were in office before President Kagame won another term in the July elections have been reappointed. Among the new faces in the Cabinet is Prudence Sebahizi, the new Minister of Trade and Industry and Richard Nyirishema, the Minister of Sports, and Christine Nkulikiyinka, the Minister of Public Service and Labour. There is also Doris Uwicyeza Picard, the CEO of Rwanda Governance Board (RGB). ALSO READ: Trade, sports dockets get ministers as Kagame names new cabinet Prior to his appointment, Sebahizi, a trade economist who replaced Jean Chrysostome Ngabitsinze, was the Director of Institutional Matters and Programs Coordination at the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat in Accra, Ghana. Sebahizi was part of the negotiations that led to Rwanda’s accession to the East African Community (EAC) in 2007. He has also previously advised the Rwandan government on regional integration. Until her appointment as Minister of Public Service and Labour, replacing Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya who was dismissed in late July, Nkulikiyinka was the CEO of Rwanda Cooperation Initiative. She has previously served as Rwanda’s ambassador to the Nordic countries, envoy to Germany, and Russia. Nyirishema, who replaced Aurore Mimosa Munyangaju, was the vice president of competitions at the Rwanda Basketball Federation (FERWAFA), a position he had held since 2016. ALSO READ: Who is Nyirishema, Rwanda’s new Minister of Sports? Until her appointment as RGB CEO, Uwicyeza, who replaced Usta Kayitesi, was the Coordinator of Migration and Economic Development Partnership Coordination Unit at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Prior to that, Uwicyeza was the Chief Technical Advisor in the Ministry of Justice. President Kagame was sworn in on August 11 for a five-year term. According to the Constitution, the Cabinet is accountable to the President and the Parliament.
