The President of Chad and President of the Transitional Military Council, Gen Mahamat arrived in Rwanda on Friday 18th March 2022 for a two-day official visit.

Upon arrival at Kigali International Airport, he was received by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Vincent Biruta. On the first day of his visit, he also met with President Paul Kagame and visited Kigali Genocide Memorial.

After holding tête-à-tête with the visiting Head of State, Kagame said that ‘our experience as Rwandans have shown us that reconciliation must indeed be an inclusive process’ highlighting that it the right time to strengthen collaboration.

“The general cooperation agreement to be signed today, is a chance to continue exchanging and sharing lessons such as this with each other. This is the right time to strengthen our relations and deepen our collaboration in areas of mutual interests,” he noted.

Chad is undergoing difficult moments to rebuild the economy and promote citizens’ livelihoods following a long period of conflicts.

Rwanda has also overcome dark moments, restored peace and promoted reconciliation through different initiatives which other countries can learn from.

The Head of State revealed that COVID-19 pandemic has reversed the development gains that countries had made and are witnessing more instability on African continent noting that a lot is at stake for all.

President Kagame assured Gen Mahamat of close collaboration with his country to deal with effects of COVID-19 and instability.

“We must combine our individual efforts and confront our common challenges together. Rwanda is ready for much closer cooperation,” he said.

Chad is a landlocked country surrounded by countries faced with insecurity. Its capital, N’Djamena is located nearby the north of Nigeria , a region that is often subject to Boko Haram threats.

Chadian President Gen Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno has thanked Rwanda for being close to Chad during difficult times, particularly offensives of Boko Haram and tragic moments in April last year when his father died on the frontline.

He said that Rwanda endured horrendous moments during the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi but has overcome the tragic past to embark on a resilience journey with bold transformation agenda where many countries are learning from it after more than 20 years.

“Our countries have face challenges. Your country has gone through the worst atrocities. We discover today a beautiful country in a couple of decades has become a role model for the entire world.

You country and mine have many similarities, be it cultural and others. Chad will benefit a lot in this transitional period to learn from Rwanda’s success stemming from good governance. Your Excellency, we want to draw an inspiration from Rwanda’s model,” he said.

Gen Mahamat also congratulated President Kagame for his leadership as a Panafrican and his leadership in leading African Union reforms through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfTCA) and facilitating Africans to come to Rwanda without Visa. He commended the model noting that more countries should follow the suit.

Gen Mahamat expressed willingness to open doors for RwandAir and invited the carrier to visit Chad and explore available opportunities.

Among others, he invited Kagame to visit Chad.

During his visit, both countries signed general cooperation agreements.

Gen Mahamat is expected to meet with close to 1000 Chadians studying in Rwanda on Saturday 19th March 2022.

Chadian President has come to Rwanda for a two-day visit.

President Paul Kagame exchanging greetings with his counterpart of Chad at Urugwiro Village.