Kigali, 17 September 2013

President Kagame today received credentials of 7 new envoys accredited to Rwanda. The new Ambassadors will represent China, Spain, Russia, Malawi, Denmark, Mozambique and Kuwait. Some of the envoys will be based in Kigali, while others will be based in other African capitals.

Ambassador Luis Manuel Cuesta Civis who will represent the Kingdom of Spain was started his diplomatic career 20 years ago and he has served in different capacities. He says he will promote bilateral relations between Rwanda and Spain, and ensure both countries effect beneficial exchanges.

Ambassador Yaqoub Youssef Al-Sanad who presented his credentials as Kuwaiti Ambassador has served in his country’s various diplomatic missions, including in Brasilia, Ottawa, Malaga, Madrid and New York. In November 2010 he was appointed Ambassador, representing Kuwait to Kenya from where he will cover Tanzania, Burundi and Rwanda. Cooperation between Rwanda and Kuwait are based on activities funded or co-funded by loans of the Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED).

Ambassador Shen Yong-xiang of China has worked for both the Ministries of Education and Foreign Affairs from 1990 to 1998, after when he commenced his diplomatic service. He also served as Counselor in Hong Kong; the Permanent Mission to the UN Office in Geneva and other International Organizations and Conferences from 1998 to 2006; Deputy Director General in the Department of International Organizations and Conferences from 2006 to 2009; and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China to the Republic of Madagascar from 2009 up to his recent appointment to Rwanda.

High Commissioner Flossy Gomile-Chidyaonga was a lecturer at the University of Malawi, before commencing her diplomatic career. She started her diplomatic service as the Deputy High Commissioner of Malawi to the United Kingdom and is currently the High Commissioner of Malawi to Tanzania, from where she will oversee Rwanda.

Ambassador Dan E. Frederiksen will represent Denmark in Rwanda based in Kampala, Uganda. He commenced his diplomatic career in 1987 as second Secretary in charge of development in Dhaka, Bangladesh and then he served successively as Head of Section, Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1987-1995); Head of Department for UN Affairs; Counsel in charge of Human Rights at Denmark Permanent Mission, Geneva (up to 1998). From 2007 to 2012 he represented Denmark to South Africa as Ambassador Plenipotentiary from where he covered Namibia; Botswana; Lesotho; Swaziland and Madagascar. In 2012 he was appointed Ambassador, representing Denmark in Kampala, Uganda from where he will cover Rwanda and Burundi.

Ambassador Andrey Vladimirovich Polyakov will represent Russia based in Kigali. His diplomatic career spans over 40 years, having commenced in 1973 and he sequentially served at various position in the embassies of the former USSR and Russian Federation in Sudan (1973-1977); Lebanon (1980 -1985 and 1999-2001); Egypt (1988 – 1993). From 2006–2011 he served in Tunisia as his country’s Ambassador.

Ambassador Vincent Mebunia Veloso, a lawyer from Eduardo Mondlane served as Chief Executive Officer of the Mozambique National Power Utility Company from 1995 to 2006. His diplomatic career commenced in 2006 when he was appointed to represent Mozambique to Zimbabwe at ambassadorial level. He was posted to Tanzania in January, 2013 from where he will serve as Ambassador to Rwanda.