Rwanda and Senegal signed 11 cooperation agreements covering areas including development, trade and bilateral relations as the two countries seek to deepen their partnership.

The agreements were signed on Wednesday, October 7, by Olivier Nduhungirehe, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and his Senegalese counterpart, Cheikh Niang, during the inaugural session of the Joint Permanent Commission on Cooperation between the two countries in Kigali.

The Joint Commission was held alongside the Rwanda-Senegal Investment Forum aimed at strengthening links between businesses and investors from the two countries.

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Nduhungirehe said the agreements were part of efforts to translate the political commitment of the two countries’ leaders into practical cooperation.

"We believe that connecting the business communities of the two countries is very important in supporting the political will of the two Heads of State and the two governments to strengthen their cooperation,” he said.

"The issue is not simply to sign agreements. We can sign many agreements, but what is most important is to ensure that the areas covered by these agreements are critical and important to both countries and their populations, but also that these agreements are implemented so that there are concrete results on the ground,” he added.

Nduhungirehe also noted that Rwanda and Senegal could use the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to increase trade and investment between African countries.

Minister Niang said President Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s three-day state visit to Rwanda in October 2025 provided an important opportunity to strengthen relations between the two countries.

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During his visit, President Faye and President Paul Kagame witnessed the signing of several agreements covering areas including mobility, agriculture and livestock, health, strategic programmes and correctional services.

These included agreements exempting holders of diplomatic, service and ordinary passports from visa requirements, as well as protocols on cooperation in agriculture and livestock, health and the development of strategic programmes. The two countries also signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in correctional and penitentiary services.

"Our responsibility is to build on these commitments, ensure their follow-up and promote their concrete implementation,” Niang said.

"A bilateral relationship can only reach its full potential when political and diplomatic ties are extended into exchanges between businesses, investors, universities, research centres and other institutions.”

The two countries are expected to hold a meeting of experts next year to review progress in implementing the agreements. The second session of the Joint Permanent Commission is expected to take place in Senegal.

The two ministers said they hoped the agreements would have made significant progress by the time the commission meets again.