RAO HONGWEI, the outgoing Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda on Wednesday, March 16, visited the headquarters of the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) to bid farewell to François Ngarambe, the Secretary General of the party. Rao who started his term of service in Rwanda in 2016 is set to leave in the coming days and the highlight of the discussions held with Ngarambe at the Rusororo-based headquarters was the existing bilateral relations between the RPF Inkotanyi and the Communist Party of China. According to information from the RPF secretariat, Ambassador Hongwei appreciated the people-centered governance by the RPF, likening it to that of the Communist Party of China (CPC) – both ruling parties of their respective countries. “Ambassador Rao commended the relationship between the two parties and said that over the past five years of his tenure, they continued to build solid ties based on their similarities,” reads a tweet posted on the RPF official timeline. Rao also noted that Covid-19 reduced physical contact (between the two parties) but exchange was maintained using different means. In the past, the RPF and the CPC often held exchange visits of officials, but such was hindered by the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic that has been prevalent for the past two years. The Chinese envoy also appreciated the government of Rwanda for the facilitation rendered to him during his five-year tour of duty to Rwanda. On his part, Ngarambe said that during the last five years much has been done between Rwanda and China, giving an example of the visit by the Chinese President to Rwanda. In addition, he noted that China increased its partnership with Rwanda in different sectors. “Interparty relations also increased during your tenure and I implore you to continue being a good “ambassador” for Rwanda wherever you will go after this assignment,” Ngarambe told Rao. “And you will always find a home in Rwanda any time you feel like coming back,” he added. Among the key milestones of Rao’s tenure in Rwanda include the visit by the Chinese President Xi Jinping which took place in July 2018. It is also during his term that the two countries celebrated 50 years of bilateral cooperation which was marked last year.
