KIGALI, Rwanda – President Paul Kagame met with Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who arrived in Kigali on Saturday, August 10, ahead of Kagame’s inauguration ceremony scheduled for Sunday.
Mnangagwa is among more than 20 leaders who have gathered in Kigali to attend President Kagame’s swearing-in ceremony at Amahoro Stadium.
In a statement shared on X, the President’s Office noted that the two leaders “reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening the existing fruitful cooperation between Rwanda and Zimbabwe.”
Kagame is set to be sworn in for a new five-year term after securing a landslide victory in the July 14-15 elections, where he won over 99 percent of the vote. His re-election saw him defeat Frank Habineza of the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda and independent candidate Philipe Mpayimana by a significant margin.
The inauguration ceremony, coming nearly three weeks after Kagame’s re-election, has drawn a host of international dignitaries. Other leaders who arrived in Kigali on Saturday include South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Mayardit, who also serves as the Chairperson of the East African Community, President Umaro Sissoco Embalo of Guinea Bissau, Gabonese President Brice Oligui Nguema, Ivory Coast Vice President Tiemoko Meyliet Koné, São Tomé and Príncipe Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada, Guinean President Gen Mamadi Doumbouya, and Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko.