The event, organized by the International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA), will be held between October 26th and 31st, 2025.
Evariste Murenzi, the Commissioner General of Rwanda Correctional Service (RCS), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to host the conference during an event presided over by ICPA President Peter Severin in Istanbul, Turkey, on Thursday, April 25.
The prisons boss is attending a five-day ICPA conference on technology in corrections and innovation in prison infrastructure, which kicked off on Monday, April 22.
“The signed Memorandum of Understanding between RCS Commissioner General Evariste Murenzi and ICPA President Peter Severin is an indication of the trust that the global corrections association has in Rwanda to host the mentioned conference from October 26th to 31st, 2025,” the department said in a statement.
ICPA is a non-profit association for prison professionals founded in 1998 with a mission to promote and share ethical and effective correctional practices to enhance public safety and healthier communities worldwide.
It is a non-governmental organization in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC).
Rwanda will be the second African country to host the ICPA AGM and conference after Namibia, which hosted the event in 2014.
The conference brings together more than 900 participants drawn from different parts of the world and aims to recognize outstanding progress and excellence with respect to its mission, particularly in prisons/corrections achievements which advance humanitarian, environmental, and professional corrections and prisons approaches.
Safety of Rwanda Bill, which sought to declare Rwanda a safe destination for asylum seekers after the Supreme Court declared the scheme unlawful, faced strong opposition from the Labour Party and human rights groups.
The groups argued that the safety of the migrants could not be guaranteed in Rwanda with the Lords pushing for amendments to ensure the legislation had “due regard” for international and key domestic laws, including human rights and modern slavery legislation.
The Supreme Court judges had earlier ruled that there were substantial grounds for believing “asylum seekers would face a real risk of ill-treatment by reason of refoulement [return] to their country of origin if they were removed to Rwanda”.
Steve Valdez-Symonds, Amnesty International UK’s refugee and migrant rights director, shared similar sentiments, arguing that the refugees were not safe in Rwanda.
“The Supreme Court looked at it all very carefully and concluded Rwanda did not have a system in place to protect refugees,” Valdez-Symonds said.
After a sustained parliamentary ping-pong the [bill sailed through on Monday->https://en.igihe.com/politics-48/article/reprieve-for-sunak-as-uk-finally-passes-bill-to-send-asylum-seekers-to-rwanda] after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stuck to his guns on plans to deter vulnerable migrants from making dangerous crossings to the UK using small boats.
Sunak, while defending the bill, argued that the scheme would help break the business model of criminal gangs who exploit the migrants.
The Lords allowed the legislation to pass without further amendments. It received the royal assent today paving the way for the first flight of migrants to depart to Rwanda in July.
In light of the debate about the safety of Rwanda we sought to know the experiences of the foreigners living in Rwanda as the country continues to rebuild itself after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, which claimed the lives of more than a million people.
Most of the foreigners we spoke to including students and entrepreneurs all agreed that Rwanda is a safe country governed by the rule of law.
“I have been in Rwanda for about a year now. If you’ve been to other parts of the world and other parts of Africa, you haven’t experienced this. It’s a very unique and beautiful part of Africa. It’s an extremely safe part of Africa. Coming from the South and being in other African countries, you cannot compare what we have in Rwanda,” South African business executive Firhaan Brood said.
Leila Drameh, a Gambian studying at Kigali Independent University, said, “Rwanda is a safe country. There are rules and regulations that govern the country…Hearsay doesn’t really work. People should be factual.”
Watch the video below to discover more about Rwanda:
Statistics from the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) show that the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) recorded a significant growth of 52 percent in 2023 generating revenue of $95 million (RWF 122 billion).
The country hosted 65,000 delegates compared to 35,161 in 2022.
The 73rd FIFA Congress held on March 16, 2023, was one of the notable events held in the capital Kigali. The event brought together more than 1,500 delegates representing 211 FIFA members, head of Confederations and other global players in football.
During the 4th and the first-ever elective FIFA Congress held in Africa, Gianni Infantino was re-elected FIFA President to serve for four more years.
The Women Deliver 2023 Conference (WD2023) was held in Kigali from 17-20 July 2023, where more than 5,000 delegates gathered to advance gender equality.
Additionally, the Giants of Africa Festival took place in Kigali from 13– 19 August 2023. The event brought together more than 300 African youth from 16 countries, who participated in an intensive series of basketball clinics and leadership workshops designed to help them pursue their dreams.
The countries that were represented included Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal, Somalia, Uganda, Botswana, Ghana, South Sudan, Morocco, Cameroon and Mali.
Rwanda also hosted two other major entertainment events in 2023: the Trace Africa Music Awards and Festival, which brought together music, fashion, and arts, giving young and creative talents a global stage to showcase their skills; and The Move Afrika by Global Citizen, which was headlined by the globally renowned artist Kendrick Lamar.
Other notable events were World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), Basketball Africa League, Ironman, Cybertech Africa 2023, International Conference on Learning Representation, Africa Health Agenda International Conference, International Congress on Conservation Biology, Mobile World Congress, Global Anglican – GAFCON, nclusive Fintech Forum, Segal Family Foundation and the 19th Kwita Izina Ceremony.
Norrsken African Week Meeting, TIME 100 Summit + Awards, Unleash Rwanda and the Kigali International Peace Marathon were also among notable events hosted in Rwanda in 2023.
RDB, in an annual report unveiled on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, affirmed that the events are a testament to the Rwanda Convention Bureau commitment to position Rwanda as a premier and preferred destination.
“Events such as the 73rd FIFA Congress Meeting and the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) Global Summit, which were hosted on the African continent for the first time, underscore Rwanda’s competitive advantage and brand recognition,” RDB stated.
Most of the foreign investments registered in Rwanda in 2023, totaling $2.4 billion (RWF 3.08 trillion), originated from India and the United Arab Emirates, a new report shows.
The report unveiled by the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, shows that India leads with 7.2% of foreign investments in Rwanda, followed by the UAE at 5.6% and Germany in third place with 5.3%.
Mozambique and Nigeria made it to the list of the top five countries with significant investments in Rwanda, with market shares of 4.8% and 4.7% respectively. They are followed by the United Kingdom (3.8%), China (3.7%), United States (3.6%) and Eritrea (2.8%).
A majority of the investments registered by RDB, including joint ventures, were of Rwandan origin, representing 39.6% of the total investments.
Top sectors that attracted significant investments in Rwanda in 2023 are real estate, manufacturing, and arts, entertainment, and recreation.
According to RDB, 83.4% of all investments, totaling $2.1 billion (RWF 2.69 trillion), were directed to Kigali City, with the Eastern Province, which came in second, attracting 10.6% of the investments $262.9 million (RWF 337 billion).
Northern Province attracted 2.5% of the investments totaling ($60.8 million to finish third, while Southern Province and Western Province attracted 1.9% ($46.9 million) and 1.6% ($40.6 million) of the investments respectively.
Notably, Northern and Southern provinces recorded significant investments in agro processing and agriculture.
{{Creating employment}}
RDB noted that the new investments, which grew by 50 compared to 2022, are projected to create more than 40,000 jobs in the next five years.
On the actual jobs created by the investments, the Board said TekExperts created more than 500 jobs for software engineers. Additionally, 408 jobs were created by Kivest Ltd through agricultural projects, and 500 jobs were created by C&D Leather Shoes Production Plant.
An additional 134 jobs were created by RwandMoz Ltd for the Aquaculture project.
Auto Group also contributed to job creation with 613 new positions.
According to the Board, the top 10 exports include unwrought gold (including gold plated with platinum), zirconium ore, tin ore, and tungsten ore.
Other top exports were cement, malt extract, wheat or meslin flour, cereal flours, coffee, and tea.
The United Arab Emirates received the largest share of exports, amounting to 56.9 percent, primarily consisting of goods such as minerals and horticulture products.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) came second, accounting for 10.4 percent of the exports, followed by China (5.0%), Hong Kong (2.6%), and the United Kingdom (2.2%).
National carrier, RwandAir, transported a total of 4,595 tons of cargo, with the majority of shipments destined for Dubai, the United Kingdom, and Belgium.
RDB, in a report unveiled on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, disclosed that exports cargo increased by 22.7 percent in 2023 compared to the previous year.
The surge in exports cargo has been attributed to increased capacity out of Kigali to UAE market and increased frequency of flights out of Kigali to London, which presented opportunities for more cargo shipments out Kigali.
The opening of the route to France is also said to have contributed to the growth of the export sector in 2023.
RDB also engaged in various initiatives to boost access to international markets for local producers, enhance product quality and foster development of new products.
The Board said it facilitated training for 60 potential and existing exporting companies in the Manufacturing, Agroprocessing, Handcraft, and IT sectors. The training covered a wide range of topics including international market entry, packaging and labeling skills, and the protocols and rules of origin under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Additionally, some 123 companies were assisted to access the export market through nine promotional events conducted in Tanzania, Uganda, Nigeria, Egypt, Turkey, Dubai, China, Italy, Mozambique. This led to closure of 35 export deals worth $55,763,466 (RWF 71 billion).
“13 companies were on boarded to the International platforms- Dubuy.com, Rwandamart.rw and ArabianOrganic.com and 25 Entrepreneurs were trained on e-commerce under n-eutrentepreneur program,” the report reads in part.
More than 287 Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) were also reported to have benefitted from capacity building, market linkage, financial linkage and standard certification acquisition.
This is the highest number of gorilla visitors recorded in Rwanda in the country’s history.
Gorilla tourism is a major revenue earner for Rwanda. Tourists pay at least US $1500 per person to see gorillas in the country. This fee covers the gorilla trekking permit, which grants access to the park and the gorillas.
The new report further shows that the tourism sector recorded an impressive growth to record $650 million (RWF 832 billion) in revenues last year, representing a 35 percent increase in revenue compared to 2022.
Additionally, the Board reported that the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) sector generated more than $95 million (RWF 121.5 billion) in revenue in 2023, marking a 48 percent growth compared to 2022.
Rwanda hosted over 160 events and an estimated 65,000 delegates in 2023.
Other milestones recorded in the Tourism sector include the upgrade of Nyungwe National Park into a UNESCO World Heritage site and the launch of the Mantis Kivu Queen Uburunga, a luxury houseboat that offers a scenic experience of exploring Lake Kivu.
Additionally, the tourism sector recorded the signing of several partnerships and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs). These include the Visit Rwanda – Bayern Munich Partnership, a five-year football and tourism promotion partnership, and the Vetrak Clubs World Champion (VCWC) deal that will see Rwanda host the next three editions of the VCWC football tournament at Amahoro National Stadium.
The new statistics come at a time when the tourism sector is projected to fully recover from the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, having made a significant rebound in 2023.
According to a survey UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, the sector achieved 88 per cent growth of pre-pandemic levels last year.
Total export revenues from tourism, encompassing passenger transport, reached approximately $1.6 trillion in 2023, nearly 95 per cent of the $1.7 trillion recorded in 2019.
Projections suggest a continuation of this positive trend, with estimates indicating a 2 per cent growth in international tourist arrivals above 2019 levels.
The report unveiled on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, indicates that the commitments registered by RDB are expected to create 40,198 job opportunities in the next five years.
According to the Board, the Rwanda Global Business Services (GBS) Initiative unveiled last year is expected to position Rwanda as a leading destination for investors and, in turn, create at least 10,000 jobs by 2030.
On the actual jobs created by RDB initiatives, the Board said TekExperts created more than 500 jobs for software engineers. Additionally, 408 jobs were created by Kivest Ltd through agricultural projects, and 500 jobs were created by C&D Leather Shoes Production Plant. An additional 134 jobs were created by RwandMoz Ltd for the Aquaculture project.
Auto Group also contributed to job creation with 613 new positions. The Board also initiated coaching and support for more than 11,400 Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in developing their banking businesses.
Furthermore, 201 Rwandans were matched to foreign employment opportunities in Dubai and Qatar through the KORA job portal, where some 17,777 job seekers and 211 employers have been registered so far.
The report also highlights key milestones recorded in the health sector, including the establishment of a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility for the production of mRNA-based drugs in Kigali.
Rwanda was the first, among the selected three African countries, to host the mRNA Manufacturing Facility as part of BioNTech’s efforts to advance mRNA-based vaccine candidates to address malaria and tuberculosis in the region.
Another key milestone achieved last year was the operationalization of the Gabiro Agribusiness Hub (GAH), a result of a joint venture established between the Government of Rwanda through its Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources and Netafim Ltd, an Israeli company that offers global leadership in the agriculture manufacturing industry.
Through the partnership, the government hopes to increase the export of high-value crops and value-added agricultural products as well as ensure food security in Rwanda through the use of cutting-edge technology and best practices.
The Tourism sector also recorded an impressive growth to record $650 million (RWF 832 billion) in revenues last year.
This, RDB said, represents a 35 percent increase in revenue compared to 2022. Rwanda welcomed 25,927 gorilla visitors in 2023, marking a 29.4 percent increase recorded in 2022. This is the highest number of visitors received in the country’s history.
Additionally, the Board reported that the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) sector generated more than $95 million (RWF 121.5 billion) in revenue in 2023, marking a 48 percent growth compared to 2022.
Rwanda hosted over 160 events and an estimated 65,000 delegates in 2023.
Other milestones recorded in the Tourism sector include the upgrade of Nyungwe National Park into a UNESCO World Heritage site and the launch of the Mantis Kivu Queen Uburunga, a luxury houseboat that offers a scenic experience of exploring Lake Kivu.
Additionally, the tourism sector recorded the signing of several partnerships and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs). These include the Visit Rwanda – Bayern Munich Partnership, a five-year football and tourism promotion partnership, and the Vetrak Clubs World Champion (VCWC) deal that will see Rwanda host the next three editions of the VCWC football tournament at Amahoro National Stadium.
The Rwandan government also entered into a five-year deal with Global Citizen to launch Move Afrika, a pan-African campaign to create job and entrepreneurship opportunities for Africa’s emerging generations through annual world-class live events.
In the export sector, Rwanda recorded a 9.5 percent increase in earnings, reaching $2.3 billion compared to 2022.
In the business environment milestones, Rwanda achieved a remarkable milestone by ranking 1st in sub-Saharan Africa in the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index. RDB attributed these gains to the government’s commitment to upholding justice and the rule of law.
Additionally, Rwanda secured the first position in Africa in the Visa Openness Index, reflecting the country’s continued commitment to connectivity and openness for business and tourism.
RDB also takes pride in the launch of the One Stop Center (OSC) in March 2023, which houses 22 institutions providing 440 services, including facilitating participation in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
In a report tabled in parliament on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, the Auditor General revealed that illegal expenditure in government decreased to Rwf 2.57 billion in 2023 from Rwf 6.45 billion in the previous year.
Kamuhire told the MPs that the new audit, utilizing a preventive approach to contract review, unearthed Rwf 6.92 billion in financial losses likely to be recovered.
He, however, warned that further efforts are needed to curb unaccounted-for expenditures in government.
“There is still a need for Chief Budget Managers to put in place strong internal controls to avoid them,” the Auditor General remarked.
At the same time, the AG disclosed that the year ended June 2023 saw an increase in the proportion of government expenditure audited, rising to 96 percent from 95 percent in the previous year.
During the period, the total government expenditure was Rwf 5.19 trillion, with the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) auditing expenditures totaling Rwf 4.98 trillion.
The performance audits focused on the areas of national interest in agriculture, education, social protection, environment, investment, ICT, finance and economy sectors.
“We issued two hundred twenty-two (222) financial audit and (220) compliance audit reports for the financial year ended 30 June 2023. Additionally, we carried out sixteen (16) performance audits, seven (7) IS audits, and ten (10) special audits,” Kamuhire told MPs.
According to OAG, there was a gradual improvement in audit outcomes in 2023 compared to 2022.
“The proportion of audited entities receiving unqualified opinions in financial audits increased to 92% from 68% in the previous year. Similarly, those receiving unqualified opinions in compliance audits of laws and regulations on public spending rose to 69% from 61%, and for compliance with laws and regulations to realize Value for Money, the entities receiving unqualified opinions increased to 59% from 57%. Furthermore, the percentage of fully implemented recommendations rose to 59% from 57%,” he added.
