Mozambique's President Daniel Chapo arrived in Rwanda on Wednesday, August 27, on a two-day working visit in which he will hold talks with President Paul Kagame.
Chapo was welcomed at Kigali International Airport by the Minister of State for Regional Cooperation, Gen (Rtd) James Kabarebe.
Chapo and Kagame will discuss bilateral relations and cooperation between the two countries, the Mozambican presidency said in a statement on Tuesday.
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"During the visit, the two Heads of State will hold official talks focused on strengthening the relations of friendship and cooperation between Mozambique and Rwanda, with a focus on areas of mutual interest," read part of the statement written in Portuguese, an official language in the Southern African country.
Kagame and Chapo last met in mid-February in Addis Abba, on the sidelines of the African Union Summit, where they discussed bilateral relations and ways to deepen cooperation between Rwanda and Mozambique.
The two countries have cooperation in various areas, including defence and security. Since mid 2021, Rwandan troops have been deployed to the Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado, where they collaborate with Mozambican armed forces to fight terrorist groups.
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This will be Chapo&039;s first visit to Rwanda since his election in October 2024. It follows several meetings of officials from the two governments, including from the ministries of defence, foreign affairs and agriculture, among others.
Accompanying President Chapo on the visit to Rwanda are the Ministers of National Defence, Cristóvão Chume; Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Maria dos Santos Lucas; Finance, Carla Loveira; Planning and Development, Salimo Valá; and the Presidency for Civil House Affairs, Ricardo Xavier Sengo; as well as officials from the Presidency and other state institutions.
While on a three-day visit to Kigali on Saturday, Minister Chume recognised Rwanda's support in the fight against terrorism in Cabo Delgado, which had been paralysed by Islamist insurgents who killed thousands of civilians and displaced hundreds of thousands more.
"Terrorism is not only threatening Mozambique, but also Rwanda and the entire region," Chume told reporters.
"Our efforts are common, and we discussed how to improve our response capability, particularly through training, intelligence sharing, and operational coordination,” he said.
Who is Daniel Chapo?
Daniel Francisco Chapo, 48, succeeded Filipe Nyusi, both of whom come from FRELIMO, a party that has governed Mozambique since its independence from Portugal in 1975.
A former governor of Inhambane Province, Chapo is the fifth president of Mozambique. The jurist and lawyer-turned politician was sworn in as Mozambican president on January 15, after he won with more than 65 per cent of the votes in the October 9 general elections.