{"id":2000110423,"date":"2026-04-29T14:36:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T12:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/?p=2000110423"},"modified":"2026-04-29T18:14:29","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T16:14:29","slug":"rwandans-visiting-china-nearly-double-in-two-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/rwandans-visiting-china-nearly-double-in-two-years\/","title":{"rendered":"Rwandans travelling to China\u00a0 nearly double in two years"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The figures were disclosed on Tuesday during a media briefing by China\u2019s Ambassador to Rwanda, Gao Wenqi, who highlighted a steady rise in mobility between the two nations as cooperation deepens across multiple sectors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the ambassador, more than 3,500 Rwandans visited China in 2023, while the number increased to around 7,000 in 2025, reflecting what he described as \u201cremarkable growth\u201d in people-to-people exchanges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He attributed the surge largely to visa facilitation measures introduced by the Chinese Embassy in Kigali and broader efforts to strengthen bilateral engagement with Rwanda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVisa facilitation policies have encouraged an increasing number of Rwandans to visit China for business, studies, tourism, etc. As far as we know, in 2023, more than 3500 Rwandans visited China, in 2025, the number increased to around 7000, the growth rate nearly doubled,\u201d Amb. Gao said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He explained that recent reforms have made travel more accessible, including the rollout of an online visa application system, which reduces the need for multiple embassy visits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additional measures include the temporary exemption of fingerprint collection for short-term visa applicants and a 25% reduction in visa fees, both extended through 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond mobility figures, the ambassador situates the trend within a broader framework of strengthening China-Rwanda relations, particularly in education, trade, and cultural exchange. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He noted that increased travel is also linked to rising opportunities for Rwandan students, businesspeople, and professionals in China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The envoy further highlighted that China\u2019s ongoing economic planning under its 15th Five-Year Plan (2026\u20132030) is expected to deepen international cooperation, including with African countries, by expanding market access, industrial collaboration, and innovation-driven development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amb.Gao also pointed to growing China-Africa engagement under existing frameworks, saying such initiatives continue to create \u201cnew opportunities for practical cooperation\u201d between Beijing and Kigali.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda Gao Wenqi outlined China\u2019s economic outlook and the steady strengthening of trade and cooperation with Rwanda.
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
The presss briefing took place at the Chinese Embassy in Kigalo on Tuesday, April 28, 2026. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
This photo taken in September 2024 on the eve of FOCAC Summit, shows the night view of Beijing, the capital of China. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The number of Rwandans travelling to China has nearly doubled within two years, driven largely by easing visa procedures, expanding bilateral exchanges, and growing economic and educational ties between the two countries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2000110443,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[151,69],"byline":[160],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-2000110423","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel","tag-editors-choice","tag-homehighlights","byline-theophile-niyitegeka"],"bylines":[{"id":160,"name":"Th\u00e9ophile Niyitegeka","slug":"theophile-niyitegeka","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":3}],"contributors":[{"id":160,"name":"Th\u00e9ophile Niyitegeka","slug":"theophile-niyitegeka","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":3}],"featured_image":{"id":2000110443,"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/img_8218.jpg","alt":"","caption":"This photo shows the night view of Beijing, the capital of China. ","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":1000,"height":667,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/img_8218.jpg","width":150,"height":100},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/img_8218.jpg","width":300,"height":200},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/img_8218.jpg","width":768,"height":512},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/img_8218.jpg","width":1000,"height":667},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/img_8218.jpg","width":1000,"height":667}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000110423","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000110423"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000110423\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2000110485,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000110423\/revisions\/2000110485"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000110443"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000110423"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000110423"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000110423"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=2000110423"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=2000110423"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}