New members of the Cabinet who were appointed on Thursday have pledged to work even harder to achieve the mandate of their respective public entities.

Among those that were sworn in include, Dr Richard Sezibera, Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Relations; Prof. Anastase Shyaka, Minister for Local Government; Paula Ingabire, Minister for ICT and Innovation; Soraya Hakuziyaremye, Minister for Trade and Industry; Maj. Gen. Albert Murasira, Minister for Defence; and Minister for Gender and Family Promotion, Solina Nyirahabimana.

Other officials that were sworn in include, DCG Dan Munyuza, the new Inspector General of Police and his Deputy CP Félix Namuhoranye.

The New Times   s  poke to some of the new cabinet minister about their new roles and the challenges that awaits.

The new Minister of Local Government, Prof. Anastase Shyaka, who has been the Chief Executive Officer of Rwanda Governance Board since 2011, said that; "It’s great honour and huge responsibility” to be entrusted with an new portfolio.

Shyaka’s appointment comes barely two weeks after RGB released the Rwanda Governance Scorecard (RGS) 2018 where he urged government, mainly local leaders, to promote people-cantered governance for sustainable transformation.

In addition to being the CEO of RGB, Shyaka was Executive Secretary of Rwanda Governance Advisory Council from 2008-2011. A Professor of Political Science, he was also once the Director of the Centre for Conflict Management at the University of Rwanda.

As far as Local Government is concerned, he said, almost everybody knows where the problems are.

"Most likely we know the most part of the solutions; what we need to focus on as the local government family is implementing those solutions that work for our people,” he said.

A Fulbright Scholar in Residence (2007) at George Mason University, Shyaka is also a member of the Board of the UN Global Centre for Public Service Excellence based in Singapore. He holds a PhD in Political Science from University of Gdańsk in Poland and a Masters in Chemical Technology.

Soraya Hakuziyaremye,42, who is the new Minister for Trade and Industry, told The New Times that this is a role that "I am honoured and privileged to take on.”

The eldest daughter in a family of four children, Hakuziyaremye was born in Brussels.

Before her new appointment, Hakuziyaremye was Senior Vice President at ING Bank in London. She has worked in senior management positions at BNP Paribas Group in Paris, and the Bank of New York Mellon in Brussels.

From 2012 to 2014, Hakuziyaremye served as Senior Advisor to the then Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Louise Mushikiwabo, who she said is also her role model.

"For me it was enriching to have Minister Louise Mushikiwabo here saying goodbye to her colleagues while stepping into this role. What a role model we have,” she said.

Hakuziyaremye is a former Board Member of Ngali Holdings and Brussels-Africa Hub.

The holder of a postgraduate degree in International Management from the Thunderbird Graduate School of Global Management Hakuziyaremye is looking forward to bringing her international exposure to help local businesses become more competitive.

"Our President is a result oriented leader; that’s what we are here to do,” she said.

Minister for ICT and Innovation, Paula Ingabire.

The new Minister ICT and Innovation, Paula Ingabire, 35, has worked in the IT sector for the last nine years.

An Information Technology engineer, Ingabire said; "I am glad to continue my journey in this industry.”

She said she is keen to push for innovation, leveraging on the country’s investments in the ICT infrastructure to drive transformation across all sectors of the economy.

"The focus, going forward, is to strengthen the innovation ecosystem and building talent because it is critical for us to be able to position ourselves as an innovation hub,” Ingabire noted.

Prior to her appointment, Ingabire served as Head of the ICT Business Development Department of the Rwanda Development Board and Coordinator of the Kigali Innovation City Initiative. She also worked as the Smart Africa coordinator, an initiative that seeks to leverage broadband infrastructure to drive Africa’s socio- economic growth.

She is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s School of Engineering & Sloan School of Management, in System Design and Management and holds a BS in Computer Engineering and Information Technology from the former Kigali Institute of Science and Technology.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw