He was initially hosted by family members of his former classmates, but upon arrival in In 1978, Fred Rwigyema returned to western Uganda and reunited with Kagame.Kagame and Rwigyema joined the NRA primarily to ease conditions for Rwandan refugees persecuted by Obote. Learn more about the early life, education, and career of Kagame in this article. Hutu refugee camps formed in As president, Kagame has prioritized national development, launching Kagame was born on 23 October 1957, the youngest of six children,Tensions between Tutsi and Hutu had been escalating during the 1950s, and culminated in the 1959 Kagame began his primary education in a school near the refugee camp, where he and other Rwandan refugees learned how to speak After completing his education, Kagame made two visits to Rwanda, in 1977 and 1978.
During his vice presidency, Kagame controlled the national army and maintained law and order, while other officials began rebuilding the country. Paul Kagame, Rwandan military leader and politician, who, as leader of the Rwandan Patriot Front, defeated Hutu extremist forces to end the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Many RPF soldiers carried out retribution killings. He is the 4th and current President of Rwanda, having taken office in 2000 when his predecessor, Pasteur Bizimungu, resigned.
However, praise for the progress occurring under his administration continued to be tempered by criticism of its intolerance of political dissent and In 2000 he became president of Rwanda. A small number of these soldiers were later put on trial. The continuing violence, along with appointing of local government officials who were almost exclusively RPF Tutsi, caused serious disagreement between Kagame and senior Hutu government members, including prime minister Following the RPF victory, approximately two million Hutu fled to refugee camps in neighboring countries, particularly Zaire, fearing RPF reprisals for the Rwandan genocide.Despite the disbanding of the camps, the defeated forces of the former regime continued a cross-border insurgency campaign into Rwanda from Although his primary reason for military action in Zaire was the dismantling of the refugee camps, Kagame also began planning a war to remove long-time dictator President Kagame and the Rwandan government retained strong influence over Kabila following his inauguration, and the RPA maintained a heavy presence in Kinshasa.Although Kagame's primary reason for the two wars in the Congo was Rwanda's security, he was alleged to gain economic benefit by exploiting the In the late 1990s, Kagame began to disagree publicly with Bizimungu and the Hutu-led government in Rwanda.The RPF selected two candidates, Kagame and RPF secretary general Between 1994 and 2003, Rwanda was governed by a set of documents combining President Habyarimana's 1991 constitution, the Arusha Accords, and some additional protocols introduced by the transitional government.The draft constitution was released in 2003; it was approved by the parliament, and was then put to a referendum in May of that year.Following the adoption of the new constitution in May 2003, the government set dates for the first elections to be held under the new law.
In a 2009 article, Kagame wrote that "the primary purpose of aid should ultimately be to work itself out", and should therefore focus on self-sufficiency and building private sector development.In 2006, an eight-year investigation by the French judge Former Rwandan officials have alleged that Kagame has ordered the murder and disappearance of political opponents.Most observers describe Kagame's personality as one of seriousness and intelligence. History at your fingertips
Rwandan prosecutors blamed Kagame was declared the winner of the election, according to results released by the National Electoral Commission on As Kagame's second term progressed, he began to hint that he might seek to rewrite the term-limit clause of the Rwandan constitution, to allow him to run for a third term in the 2017 elections.The referendum took place in 18 December 2015, with Rwandans overseas voting on 17 December.In accordance with the constitutional change, a presidential election was held on 4 August 2017, in which Kagame was re-elected to a third term with 98.79% of the vote. The two countries have been highly supportive of the RPF programme of stabilisation and rebuilding, with the UK donating large sums each year in As part of his policy of maintaining close relations with English speaking countries, Kagame sought membership of the Commonwealth of Nations, which was granted in 2009.Kagame's relations with the US and UK have come under strain in the early 2010s, following allegations that Rwanda is supporting the M23 rebel movement in Eastern Congo.China has been investing in Rwandan infrastructure since 1971, with early projects including hospitals in Kagame has been vocal in his praise of China and its model for relations with Africa, saying in a 2009 interview that "the Chinese bring what Africa needs: investment and money for governments and companies".Kagame's ultimate goal in international relations is to shift Rwanda from a country dependent on donor aid and loans towards self-sufficiency, trading with other countries on an equal footing. Many buildings were uninhabitable, and the former regime had carried with them all currency and moveable assets when they fled the country.During the genocide and in the months following the RPF victory, RPF soldiers killed many people they accused of participating in or supporting the genocide.Shortly after taking power, the Rwandan government began prosecuting crimes committed during the genocide.The unity government suffered a partial collapse in 1995.