President Hakainde Hichilema with President Kagame during his state visit to Zambia in 2022. File Photo.
Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema is expected in Rwanda for a two-day state visit beginning this Tuesday. The Zambian Head of State visits Rwanda just over a year after President Paul Kagame visited the Southern African country.
Upon arrival at Kigali International Airport on Tuesday afternoon, President Hichilema will inspect a guard of honour at Urugwiro Village with his host, President Kagame, who will later host his guest to a state banquet.
On Wednesday, President Hichilema is expected to visit Kigali Genocide Memorial at Gisozi, before holding talks with President Kagame at Urugwiro Village. The two leaders are expected to address a press conference thereafter. The visit is aimed at strengthening bilateral ties between Rwanda and Zambia.
The two Heads of State are expected to hold a tête-à-tête meeting before Ministers from either side sign different bilateral cooperation agreements.
While in Rwanda, President Hichilema is expected to visit the startup hub Norssken to see what Rwanda is doing to boost innovation and entrepreneurship and also attend the Inclusive Fintech Forum (IFF) which opened Tuesday in Kigali.
He will also visit the Kigali Special Economic Zone (KSEZ), located in Gasabo district to conclude his visit.
His visit to Rwanda follows President Kagame’s two-day state visit to Zambia which began on April 2, 2022. While in Zambia, the two leaders witnessed the signing of Memorandums of Understanding on Mutual Administrative Assistance between Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) and Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA); on Cooperation on immigration Matters; in the field of Health and on Investment Promotion between Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) and Rwanda Development Board (RDB).
The MoUs signed entailed cooperation in the field of Agriculture; on cooperation in the field of Fisheries and Livestock Development; and on Trade and Investment Cooperation.
President Hakainde gave President Kagame a tour of Victoria falls, a waterfall on the Zambezi River in Southern Africa that provides habitat for several unique species of plants and animals and later the same day, President Hakainde and First Lady Mutinta Hakainde hosted their guest to a State Banquet.
On the last day of his State Visit, President Kagame visited Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site that is home to one half of the Mosi-oa-Tunya – ‘The Smoke Which Thunders’ – known worldwide as Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River.
The two leaders had a guided tour of the Kazungula Bridge, a road and rail bridge over the Zambezi River between Zambia, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. The last stop was the Kazungula One Stop Border Post before President Kagame extended an official invitation to President Hakainde for a reciprocal visit to Rwanda.
