Kigali, 11 October 2012
President Kagame today received credentials of envoys from Kingdom of Netherlands, the Republic of Germany and the Holy See accredited to the Republic of Rwanda, in a special accreditation ceremony organized at Urugwiro Village.
The new accredited Ambassador of Netherlands to Rwanda, Leoni Margarita Cuelenaere, has served at Ambassadorial level in Colombo, Sri Lanka (2008-2011). Her new posting in Rwanda comes after a brief assignment as Dutch resident Ambassador in Sana’a, Yemen.
Speaking to the press after presenting their credentials, the envoys expressed their country’s interest in strengthening their relationship with Rwanda in different cooperation areas.
Ambassador Leoni Margarita Cuelenaere told the press:
“I am fortunate to be here in Rwanda where we aim to maintain the very good relations with Rwanda and continue on path of good partnerships you have taken.”
Mgr. Luciano Russo, the designate Apostolic Nuncio in Rwanda has served at various positions in pontifical representations in Papua New Guinea, Honduras, Syria, Brazil, Holland, United States; the latest of his postings being in Bulgaria. He is fluent in Italian, English, French and Spanish.
Ambassador Peter Fahrenholtz, the new German Ambassador to Rwanda, is a career diplomat who joined the German Federal Foreign Office in 1988 and has since served mostly in Eastern Europe and Asia. He was the recent Head of Division of West and Central Africa at the German Federal Foreign Office headquarters. Ambassador Peter Fahrenholtz expressed his country’s interest in increased private sector partnerships between German and Rwandan businesses. “We want to encourage private business from Germany to invest, to trade, create employment in Rwanda and ensure win win propositions,” he expressed. When asked about his stance in the Eastern DRC, Ambassador Peter Fahrenholtz asserted Germany’s support for regional solutions to regional problems. “Germany believes African problems can only be solved by African initiatives,” he added.
The envoys praised Rwanda for its progress and expressed their commitment to ensuring mutually beneficial partnerships.