The University of Rwanda has appointed Dr Papias Musafiri Malimba as the institution’s acting Vice Chancellor effective Monday, October 19.

Dr Musafiri, replaces Prof. Philip Cotton, the outgoing Vice Chancellor whose 5-year tenure ended on the same day, according to a statement from UR.

The appointment was made by the search committee of the university’s Board of Governor’s led by Dr Paul Davenport.

Before his appointment, Dr Musafiri, served as the Deputy Vice Chancellor for Strategic Planning and Administration (DVC-SPA) at UR.

Prior to that, he served as the Education Minister, a position he held after serving as the Principal of College of Business and Economics at UR.

Additionally, Dr Musafiri served as the Director of Policy, Research and Strategy at Rwandan Higher Education Council (HEC) and Director of General Services in the Ministry of Justice.

Dr. Musafiri received his Bachelor Degree in Commerce and Management at the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and his Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) majoring in Finance and Information Technology from the School of Business at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT - Roorkee). 

He also has a Doctor of Philosophy in Finance from Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) University, India.