Mini-cabinet reshuffle

• Gahakwa dropped• Bazivamo gets second stint at MINALOC• Murigande goes to Education KIGALI - President Paul Kagame yesterday evening made a mini-cabinet reshuffle that saw a number of Ministers transferred to different ministries while one portfolio was scrapped. The new cabinet was announced in a statement released by Prime Minister Bernard Makuza yesterday evening. The reshuffle saw Education Minister Dr Daphrose Gahakwa dropped, replaced by Dr Charles Muligande, who has hitherto been the Minister in Charge of Cabinet Affairs. The portfolio of state minister in the Ministry of Agriculture was also scraped and the state minister Dr Agnes Kalibata was elevated to full minister. Dr. Mathias Habamungu is the only new face in the now 25-cabinet line-up. He replaced recently sacked Theoneste Mutsindashyaka as state minister for Primary and Secondary Education. Habamungu has been the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education which was given to Dr Charles Murigande as the full minister. Murigande is not a new face in the education spheres after having been rector of the National University of Rwanda in the late 90s. The mini reshuffle also saw Christophe Bazivamo get a second stint at the Ministry of Local Government, replacing long serving Protais Musoni. Musoni replaces Muligande, as new minister in charge of Cabinet Affairs. Notable in the reshuffle is that the ministry of education has for the second time in two successive reshuffles, had both minister and state minister reshuffled. President Kagame last reshuffled cabinet in March last year into which Minister Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya and her State Minister, Joseph Murekeraho were removed. Mujawamariya was sent to the Gender and Family Promotion ministry, which she has retained in the new cabinet, while Murekeraho was dropped from cabinet and has since been appointed as the head of the teachers’ saving cooperative (Umwalimu SACCOs). Meanwhile the President granted the Sabbatical Leave requested by Prof Romain Murenzi, Minister in the Office of the President in charge of ICT who requested it citing personal reasons. Scrapping the portfolio of state minister for agriculture has left only four state ministers. Ends