Emmanuel Ndindabahizi, Rwanda’s former Minister of Finance who was convicted for his role in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, has died in Benin, where he was serving a life sentence. Abubacarr Tambadou, the Registrar of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) officially informed the President of the Mechanism of Ndindabahizi’s death, noting that he “passed away of natural causes on October 5, 2025, at 4:30 p.m. in Cotonou, Republic of Benin.” He further indicated that a copy of Ndindabahizi’s death certificate was received from Beninese authorities on the evening of October 8. He was 75 years old at the time of his passing. ALSO READ: Who is Habyarimana’s best friend who died in Benin? Ndindabahizi was convicted in 2004 by the ICTR, sitting in Arusha, Tanzania, for genocide and crimes against humanity, and sentenced to life imprisonment. He was later transferred to Benin in 2009 to serve his sentence. The ICTR found Ndindabahizi guilty of participating in, encouraging, and assisting in genocidal acts committed between April and June 1994 in the former Kibuye Prefecture. At the time, Ndindabahizi was serving as Minister of Finance in the Interim Government from April to July 1994, a period during which the Genocide against the Tutsi happened. Who was Emmanuel Ndindabahizi? Born in 1950 in Gitesi commune, Kibuye prefecture (now Karongi District), Ndindabahizi’s early education took place at Kirambo and Nyagato primary schools, before attending Shyogwe Secondary School (1964–1967) and the Official College of Kigali (1967–1970). He later earned a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Social Sciences (1974) and a Degree in Management (1976) from the University of Butare. Ndindabahizi’s career spanned both public and private sectors, in 1976 to 1981, he was the head of Finance Division, Trafipro Cooperative, and from 1981 to 1985 he worked as a head of Administration and Finance, Electrogaz Furthermore, 1985–1991 he served as the Head of Internal Financing, Ministry of Planning and from 1991 to 1992, he was a consultant at Audico, a private auditing firm. Ndindabahizi joined the Social Democratic Party (PSD) in 1992 and became its Executive Secretary in Kibuye in 1993. Later that year, he was appointed Director of Cabinet at the Ministry of Finance, second only to the Minister. He further was sworn in as Minister of Finance in the Interim Government on April 9, 1994, a position he held until the government fled Rwanda in July 1994. He subsequently fled to Goma, Zaire (now DRC).
