Dr. Ngirente takes oath of office on August 30, 2017, following his appointment as Prime Minister. File Photo.
Following the swearing-in of President Paul Kagame for a fresh five year term on August 11, Rwanda’s new government is beginning to take shape following the reappointment of Dr. Edouard Ngirente as Prime Minister by the President of the Republic on Tuesday August 13.
It was no surprise as President Kagame has often expressed his appreciation of the 51-year-old technocrat’s efforts including during the electoral campaigns that preceded the July 14 and 15 Presidential and Parliament Elections, which saw Rwandans entrust the incumbent with another term in office.
Campaigning in Gakenke on July 11, President Kagame, who was the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF-Inkotanyi) coalition candidate told residents of the Northern Province district voting RPF means maintaining and safeguarding the progress achieved thus far, promising them that they will continue to partake in national opportunities, just as they did when the son of the soil was appointed Prime Minister.
By voting continuity, President Kagame said that the people of Gakenke would have done their bit to support and cooperate with him to fulfil his duties, and true to his word, he retained Dr. Ngirente as the head of government business.
Dr. Ngirente was appointed to the position in August 2017, taking the reins from Anastase Murekezi, becoming the 6th Prime Minister after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and the 11th the country has had since 1961.
President Kagame has renewed his trust in Dr. Ngirente. File Photo.
Before his appointment as Prime Minister, Dr. Ngirente was working with the World Bank Group in Washington D.C, where he served for six years as an Advisor to the Executive Director in charge of 20 African countries before he was raised to the position of senior advisor the same year he was appointed Rwanda’s Premier.
In several meetings, President Kagame, who rarely praises public for doing what they are supposed to do, has pointed to Dr. Ngirente way of doing things, often urging him on to continue doing what he does and ignore anything that would distract him.
The Economist was no stranger to the workings of the Rwandan Government having previously served in a number positions in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning before ascending to the World Bank Group.
He is a known academic with a no-nonsense attitude when it comes to work, individually keeping tabs on the implementation of government programs to the detail, perhaps what many see as the main reason for President Kagame to retain him in the crucial position which bears the responsibility of following up on the country’s vision and ambitions.
Dr. Ngirente holds a PhD in Agricultural Economics from the Catholic University of Louvain (UCL) in Belgium as well as two post-graduate degrees, including in Financial Risk Management, earned from Facultés Universitaires Saint-Louis of Brussels as well as in Agriculture Economics from UCL, which makes him qualified for the role.
In this photo dated August 30, 2017, President Kagame speaks to Dr. Ngirente, former PM Bernard Makuza, former Chief Justice Prof. Sam Rugege and former Speaker of Parliament Speaker, Donatille Mukabalisa.
He did his undergraduate studies at the National University of Rwanda (NUR) and also taught at the university which is now known as the University of Rwanda (UR), etching his name in the academia world.
As Prime Minister, Dr. Ngirente duties include coordinating government activities and monitoring the implementation of Government policies and programmes. He is also mandated to coordinate establishment and implementation of national policies and programmes, monitor and evaluate their performance and take action where necessary.
Given the country’s vision and ambitions, it is an important position that anchors everything the government is doing. Now that he has been reappointed, Dr. Ngirente will work with President Kagame to put in place a government, naming cabinet ministers, who will be next in line to take oath.
Ahead of the cabinet naming, Members of Parliament who were elected in the July 15 and 16 polls, will be sworn into the house by the Head of State on Wednesday, July 14, as the new government continues to take shape.
Dr. Ngirente speaks at the Africa CEO Forum in May 2024.
