President Kagame today received thevisitingDutch State Secretary for European Affairs and International Cooperation, Dr. Ben Knapen.
Speaking to the Press after the meeting, Rwanda’s Foreign Minister, Louise Mushikwabo said; “We had excellent discussions, Minister Knapen recognized the great strides Rwanda has made and how we are using Dutch aid effectively to transform the lives of Rwandans. We agreed to continue working closely together to enhance understanding of each other’s countries.”
Dr Knapen said “I congratulated the President on progress and determination to reach economic progress and eradicating corruption.” He added that the Dutch Government understands the need for Rwanda to prevent dissemination of genocide ideology and ethnic hatred and noted, “We are very much encouraged by the public political dialogues and the review that is taking place of the legislation regarding genocide denial and divisionism. Both the President and I agreed that this is work in progress and that it is going in the right direction.”
Dr Knapen is on his first visit to Rwanda to see the results of bilateral cooperation, in particular the impact of Dutch development support. While in Rwanda he met with the Ministers of Justice, Finance and Agriculture. He also met civil society organizations working in Unity and Reconciliation and visited Dutch-funded projects in the Northern Province including ISAR – Rwanda Institute Agricultural Research, maize and potato farmers in Musanze, and the Helpage road.