The Government of Rwanda - CountriesPedia

Rwanda - Government

Based on the etymolgy of Rwanda, it was the name translates as "domain" in the native Kinyarwanda language. The Government system in this country is the presidential republic type and the different Administrative divisions includes: 4 provinces (in French - provinces, singular - province; in Kinyarwanda - intara for singular and plural) and 1 city* (in French - ville; in Kinyarwanda - umujyi); Est (Eastern), Kigali*, Nord (Northern), Ouest (Western), Sud (Southern)

National symbols

Traditional woven basket with peaked lid; national colors: blue, yellow, green.

The flag

The National flag of Rwanda has three horizontal bands of sky blue (top, double width), yellow, and green, with a golden sun with 24 rays near the fly end of the blue band; blue represents happiness and peace, yellow economic development and mineral wealth, green hope of prosperity and natural resources; the sun symbolizes unity, as well as enlightenment and transparency from ignorance.

The National Anthem

Title	"Rwanda nziza" (Rwanda, Our Beautiful Country)
Lyric/music	Faustin MURIGO/Jean-Bosco HASHAKAIMANA

note: adopted 2001

More about the government of Rwanda

Constitution
Date of Independence	1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship)
National holiday	Independence Day, 1 July (1962)
Legal system	mixed legal system of civil law, based on German and Belgian models, and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court
International law organization participation	has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
History	Several previous; latest adopted by referendum 26 May 2003, effective 4 June 2003
Amendments	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; amended several times, last in 2015
Citizenship
Citizenship by birth	no
Citizenship by descent only	the father must be a citizen of Rwanda; if the father is stateless or unknown, the mother must be a citizen
Dual citizenship recognized	no
Residency requirement for naturalization	10 years
Executive Branch
Chief of state	President Paul KAGAME (since 22 April 2000)
Head of government	Prime Minister Edouard NGIRENTE (since 30 August 2017)
Cabinet	Council of Ministers appointed by the president
Elections/appointments	president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); note - a constitutional amendment approved in December 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; election last held on 4 August 2017 (next to be held on 15 July 2024); prime minister appointed by the president
Election results	2017: Paul KAGAME reelected president; Paul KAGAME (RPF) 98.8%, Philippe MPAYIMANA (independent), other 1.2% 2010: Paul KAGAME reelected president; Paul KAGAME (RPF) 93.1%, Jean NTAWUKURIRYAYO (PSD) 5.1%, other 1.8%
Legislative branch
Description	Bicameral Parliament consists of: Senate or Senat (26 seats; 12 members indirectly elected by local councils, 8 appointed by the president, 4 appointed by the Political Organizations Forum - a body of registered political parties, and 2 selected by institutions of higher learning; members serve 8-year terms) Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (80 seats; 53 members directly elected by proportional representation vote, 24 women selected by special interest groups, and 3 selected by youth and disability organizations; members serve 5-year terms)
Elections	Senate - last held on 16-18 September 2019 (next to be held in 2027) Chamber of Deputies - last held on 3 September 2018 (next to be held 15 July 2024)
Election results	Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; composition - men 17, women 9, percentage women 34.6% Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Rwandan Patriotic Front Coalition 40, PSD 5, PL 4, other 4, indirectly elected 27; composition - men 31, women 49, percentage women 61.3%; total Parliament percentage women 54.7%
Judicial branch
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
Diplomatic representation in the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Mathilde MUKANTABANA (since 18 July 2013)
Chancery	1714 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009
Telephone	[1] (202) 232-2882
FAX	[1] (202) 232-4544
Email address and website	[email protected] https://rwandaembassy.org/
Diplomatic representation from the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Eric KNEEDLER (since 3 October 2023)
Embassy	2657 Avenue de la Gendarmerie (Kaciyiru), P. O. Box 28 Kigali
Mailing address	2210 Kigali Place, Washington DC 20521-2210
Telephone	[250] 252 596-400
FAX	[250] 252 580-325
Email address and website	[email protected] https://rw.usembassy.gov/
National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites	2 (1 cultural, 1 natural)
Selected World Heritage Site locales	Memorial sites of the Genocide: Nyamata, Murambi, Gisozi and Bisesero (c); Nyungwe National Park (n)