Rwanda and the Kingdom of Netherlands are seeking to strengthen bilateral ties, with special focus on public private partnerships.

This was observed during an event to celebrate the 52nd birthday of King Willem-Alexander Claus George Ferdinand of The Netherlands on Wednesday evening in Kigali.

The Dutch Ambassador to Rwanda, Frédérique de Man, announced that even though the embassy will be phasing out their bilateral development programme in Rwanda by 2022, the embassy will not be closing as it looks forward to other public private partnerships in various sectors.

"Over the past few months, we have been discussing and have been working on exciting new initiatives, like investigating whether we can assist in setting up a Rwanda Innovative Finance Facility for Water (RIFFWA) which will assist in identifying bankable projects in the water sector and we are using specific Dutch finance instruments to have public private partnerships in various sectors.

"We are working hard to complete our bilateral development programme by handing over to the Rwandan Government and institutions, the replicable and sustainable models such as in landscape restoration,” she said.

The Netherlands has over the years been supporting Rwanda in integrated water resource management, agriculture and horticulture, the justice sector and civil society, while several Dutch companies have their presence in Rwanda; they are in a variety of sectors including food industry, transport, renewable energy construction, and ICT

The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and international Cooperation, Urujeni Bakuramutsa, saluted the bilateral ties between the two countries, saying that relations between Rwanda and The Netherlands will continue to grow.

"Dutch values of justice, education and self-determination have been reflected in the consistent partnership of the Kingdom of Netherlands with Rwanda especially after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi,” she said.

Urujeni Bakuramutsa. / Courtesy

She further expressed gratitude for the Kingdom’s cooperation in the justice sector including efforts to bring to book Genocide suspects who either have been tried in Dutch courts or extradited to Rwanda.

The Netherlands has extradited two Genocide fugitives and tried others.

In March, another fugitive, Venant Rutunga, wanted on charges of genocide, was arrested by the Dutch Police.

Bakuramutsa added that Rwanda is committed to enhancing its partnership and collaboration in creating new opportunities in various sectors and vowed that the next twenty-five years will be much more dynamic.

"After 25 years of cooperation, it is important to note that trade and investment have steadily grown between our two countries, promoting trade and investment is the most efficient way to create sustainable economic growth and ultimately improve livelihoods,” she added.

editor@newtimesrwanda.com