Roadside boards ‘welcoming’ President Kagame. He will not attend the summit in person. Net Photo
President Paul Kagame will not be attending the 23rd COMESA Heads of State and Government Summit which is scheduled to take place on October 31, 2024, in Bujumbura, Burundi, as social media reports have suggested.
Several photos showing ‘welcome’ billboards on the streets of Bujumbura, featuring President Kagame, have circulated on social media, with many anticipating that President Kagame will be in the Burundian capital in person.
Amb. Olivier Nduhungirehe, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, clarified that the gesture is done to welcome all Heads of State, regardless of whether they are coming in person or not.
“He is being welcomed as a Head of State of a COMESA member State, like others Heads of State, attending the Summit or not. This is the practice. Rwanda will be represented by the Minister of Trade and Industry,” Minister Nduhungirehe clarified when asked if President Kagame will be in Bujumbura.
Rwanda will instead be represented by Prudence Sebahizi, Minister of Trade and Industry, at the summit whose agenda will include a review of the state of Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) integration, the priority issues on the programme and activities and reports from the Council of Ministers and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and a Declaration from the COMESA Business forum.
Amb. Nduhungirehe said however that Rwanda being represented in the first place, in a summit being held in Burundi, is a good step in itself.
The summit will bring together key leaders from 21 member states, marking an important moment for regional integration and economic cooperation, under the theme, “Accelerating Regional Integration through the Development of Regional Value Chains in Climate Resilient Agriculture, Mining, and Tourism.”
Relations between Rwanda and Burundi have been somewhat tense, since the latter decided to close her border with Rwanda in January this year – a decision the the Government of Rwanda said it learned through media and was unilateral.
Breaking news;
Amakuru maze kubona nuko umubano w’u Rwanda n’u Burundi ushobora kuzanzamuka mu minsi iri imbere
Umwe muba diplomate baba Rundi niwe umpaye ayo makuru niyi foto
Ati; amafoto ya President Kagame yatangiye kumanikwa muri Bujumbura
🇷🇼🇧🇮❤️ pic.twitter.com/yIr7WrB0PE
— Dr. Dash (@dr_dash250) October 28, 2024
Reports in Burundi said Bujumbura closed the border in protest after Rwanda allegedly refused to hand over individuals who allegedly plotted a coup in 2015. Burundi also alleges that Rwanda backs RED Tabara, an armed group based in DRC, fighting the government of Evariste Ndayishimiye. Rwanda categorically denies both accusations.
Rwanda also accused Burundian forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) of fighting alongside government forces and armed groups, such as FDLR and Wazalendo, to attack Kinyarwanda-speaking Tutsi communities in the Eastern part of DRC.
Rwanda said the ‘unfortunate decision’ to close the border would restrict the free movement of people and goods between the two countries, and violated the principles of regional cooperation and integration of the East African Community.
A visit by President Kagame to attend the COMESA summit would be highly unprecedented, considering that the two countries are yet to work out their diplomatic differences, which has since been overshadowed by the conflict in Eastern DRC, whose solution is being sought through different regional and continental mechanisms.
Asked if Rwanda and Burundi are discussing ways of resolving the diplomatic stalemate, Minister Nduhungirehe answered in affirmative, pointing out that different services from the two countries are in touch, reiterating what he previously stated on social media, that the people of the two countries are ‘brothers and sisters’ and cannot fail to work out their differences.
The summit will convene heads of state, government officials, and top diplomats to discuss critical issues affecting the region, including trade policies, regional security, and sustainable development. As a regional economic community, COMESA has been instrumental in fostering economic growth and improving trade relations among member nations.
Key issues to be discussed at the summit include strengthening intra-regional trade, enhancing cross-border cooperation, addressing regional challenges such as climate change, security, infrastructure development and expanding digital trade and innovation within the region.
The COMESA Business Forum, a high-level dialogue focusing on engaging public and private stakeholders on solutions that will support transformation of the COMESA region into competitive and sustainable growing economies for the expansion of regional and global trade and investment, kicked off on October 28 and ends on October 30, ahead of the HoS Summit.
A Ministerial Round Table, to discuss with private sector stakeholders on the measures to accelerate the economic growth of COMESA Member States, focusing value addition on agriculture, mining and tourism, will also take place ahead of the summit.
The recommendations of the Business Forum will form part of the Forum’s Declaration to be presented to the Summit. The last Summit was hosted by Zambia in June 2023.
