The Rwandan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vincent Biruta, presided over the signing ceremony of the host country agreement between his country and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on 28 January 2022 in Kigali. “This important step strengthens the already good collaboration between IUCN and the Rwandan government,” says Vincent Biruta. According to the United Nations, host country agreements between states and organizations are instruments that ensure close and consistent relationships between stakeholders.
The signing of this agreement follows its ratification by a presidential decree and its subsequent approval by a resolution of the Prime Minister’s Cabinet on September 21, 2021. “IUCN thanks President Paul Kagame and the Government of Rwanda for ratifying the host country agreement. IUCN will continue to work hand in hand with the host country to support development in areas related to the environment, conservation policies,” says Bruno Oberle, IUCN Director General.
The IUCN office in Rwanda
The strengthening of relations between Rwanda and IUCN is engaged since 2016, through the opening of an office of the organization in Kigali. Since then, the organization has implemented various projects that have contributed to Rwanda’s national policies as well as international commitments such as those of the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Bonn Challenge, AFR100, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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As part of their collaboration, Rwanda and IUCN are co-organizing the first edition of the African Protected Areas Congress (APAC), which will be held from 7 to 12 March 2022 in Kigali. The event will focus on three key themes, protected areas, people and biodiversity.
Boris Ngounou