Rwanda

presidential republic

name: Kigali geographic coordinates: 1 57 S, 30 03 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the city takes its name from nearby Mount Kigali; the name is composed of the Bantu prefix ki- and the Rwandan word gali , meaning "broad," which is probably meant to describe the terrain

chief of state: President Paul KAGAME (since 22 April 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Justin NSENGIYUMVA (since 23 July 2025) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president election/appointment process: president directly elected by simple-majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); prime minister appointed by the president most recent election date: 4 August 2017 election results: 2024: Paul KAGAME reelected president; Paul KAGAME (RPF) 99.2%, Frank HABINEZA (DGPR) 0.5%, Philippe MPAYIMANA (independent) 0.3% 2017: Paul KAGAME reelected president; Paul KAGAME (RPF) 98.8%, Philippe MPAYIMANA (independent), other 1.2% expected date of next election: 15 July 2029 note: a constitutional amendment in 2016 reduced the presidential term from 7 to 5 years but included an exception that allowed President KAGAME to serve another 7-year term in 2017, potentially followed by two additional 5-year terms

legislature name: Parlement (Parliament) legislative structure: bicameral

highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of the chief and deputy chief justices and 5 judges; normally organized into 3-judge panels); High Court (consists of the court president, vice president, and a minimum of 24 judges and organized into 5 chambers) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges nominated by the president after consultation with the Cabinet and the Superior Council of the Judiciary (SCJ), a 27-member body of judges, other judicial officials, and legal professionals, and approved by the Senate; chief and deputy chief justices appointed for 8-year nonrenewable terms; tenure of judges NA; High Court president and vice president appointed by the president of the republic upon approval by the Senate; judges appointed by the Supreme Court chief justice upon approval of the SCJ; judge tenure NA subordinate courts: High Court of the Republic; commercial courts including the High Commercial Court; intermediate courts; primary courts; and military specialized courts

history: several previous; latest adopted by referendum 26 May 2003, effective 4 June 2003 amendment process: proposed by the president of the republic (with Council of Ministers approval) or by two-thirds majority vote of both houses of Parliament; passage requires at least three-quarters majority vote in both houses; changes to constitutional articles on national sovereignty, the presidential term, the form and system of government, and political pluralism also require approval in a referendum

ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, COMESA, EAC, EADB, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMISS, UNOOSA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

1.3% of GDP (2024 est.) 1.3% of GDP (2023 est.) 1.4% of GDP (2022 est.) 1.4% of GDP (2021 est.) 1.3% of GDP (2020 est.)

Rwanda Defense Force (RDF; Ingabo z u Rwanda): Rwanda Army (Rwanda Land Force), Rwanda Air Force (Force Aerienne Rwandaise, FAR), Rwanda Reserve Force, Special Units Ministry of Internal Security: Rwanda National Police (2025)

typically 18-30 years of age for men and women for voluntary military service (including officer candidates and those with university degrees and specialized qualifications); enlistment is either as contract (5-years, renewable twice) or career professional; no conscription (2025)

the principle responsibilities of the Rwanda Defense Force (RDF) are ensuring territorial integrity and national sovereignty and preventing infiltrations of illegal armed groups from neighboring countries, particularly the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC); since 2021, Rwanda has deployed RDF troops to the border region with the DRC to combat the rebel Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which it has accused the DRC of backing; Rwanda has been accused by the DRC, the UN, and the US of deploying RDF troops in the DRC and providing material support to the March 23 Movement (M23, aka Congolese Revolutionary Army) rebel group; the RDF also participates in UN and regional military operations, as well as multinational exercises; it has deployed several thousand RDF troops and police personnel to Mozambique to assist in combating an insurgency since 2021; Rwanda has mutual defense treaties with Kenya and Uganda the Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR) were established following independence in 1962; after the 1990-1994 civil war and genocide, the victorious Tutsi-dominated Rwandan Patriotic Front's military wing, the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA), became the country's military force; the RPA participated in the First (1996-1997) and Second (1998-2003) Congolese Wars; the RPA was renamed the Rwanda Defense Force (RDF) in 2003, by which time it had assumed a more national character with the inclusion of many former Hutu officers as well as newly recruited soldiers (2025)

approximately 3,200 Central African Republic (about 2,200 under MINUSCA, plus some 700 police; approximately 1,000 under a bi-lateral agreement); estimated 3-4,000 Democratic Republic of the Congo; estimated 3,000 Mozambique (bilateral agreement to assist with combating an insurgency; includes both military and police forces); 2,600 (plus about 450 police) South Sudan (UNMISS) (2025)

$46.543 billion (2024 est.) $42.743 billion (2023 est.) $39.485 billion (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

$3,300 (2024 est.) $3,100 (2023 est.) $2,900 (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

8.9% (2024 est.) 8.2% (2023 est.) 8.2% (2022 est.) note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

1.8% (2024 est.) 19.8% (2023 est.) 17.7% (2022 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices

37.3% of GDP (2016 est.)

$3.509 billion (2023 est.) $2.993 billion (2022 est.) $2.11 billion (2021 est.) note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

$5.783 billion (2023 est.) $4.978 billion (2022 est.) $3.856 billion (2021 est.) note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

12% (2024 est.) 12.4% (2023 est.) 15.1% (2022 est.) note: % of labor force seeking employment

revenues: $3.41 billion (2023 est.) expenditures: $3.996 billion (2023 est.) note: central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenditures converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated

cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles, cigarettes

bananas, cassava, sweet potatoes, plantains, potatoes, maize, beans, pumpkins/squash, taro, sorghum (2023) note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage

total: 13,623,302 (2024 est.) male: 6,684,655 female: 6,938,647

2% (2025 est.)

0-14 years: 37.2% (male 2,561,884/female 2,508,218) 15-64 years: 59.7% (male 3,954,608/female 4,179,844) 65 years and over: 3.1% (2024 est.) (male 168,163/female 250,585)

25.05 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

4.87 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

-0.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

total population: 66.6 years (2024 est.) male: 64.6 years female: 68.6 years

urban population: 17.9% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 3.07% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Hutu, Tutsi, Twa

Kinyarwanda (official, universal Bantu vernacular) 93.2%, French (official) 0.1%, English (official) 0.1%, Swahili/Kiswahili (official, used in commercial centers) 0.1%, more than one language, other 6.3%, unspecified 0.3% (2002 est.) major-language sample(s): Inkoranya nzimbuzi y'isi, isoko fatizo y'amakuru y'ibanze. (Kinyarwanda) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Catholic 39.9%, Pentecostal 21.3%, Protestant 14.6%, Adventist 12.2%, other Christians 4.2%, no religion 3.0%, Muslim 2.0%, other religions 2.0%; less than 1%: Jehovah Witness, not specified, Animist (2022 est.)

total population: 78.8% (2022 est.) male: 81% (2022 est.) female: 76.7% (2022 est.)

gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane, hydropower, arable land

tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List the government did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts to eliminate trafficking compared with the previous reporting period, therefore Rwanda remained on Tier 2 Watch List for the second consecutive year; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2025-trafficking-in-persons-report/rwanda

refugees: 128,561 (2024 est.) IDPs: 21,948 (2024 est.) stateless persons: 14,500 (2024 est.)

8 (2025)

total subscriptions: 12.8 million (2023 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 80 (2022 est.)

percent of population: 34% (2023 est.)