8^th May, Kigali – The Ministry of Information Technology & Communications of the Republic of Rwanda (“MiTEC”) and The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications of Japan (“MIC”) signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (“MoC”) to work toward promoting cooperation in the field of ICT.

By signing the MoC, the MIC and MiTEC hope to promote knowledge sharing in the areas of innovative technologies, services and applications. This will be achieved through exchanging experts, professionals, delegations, and visits, being a key component of fostering human resource development. These activities are expected to strengthen relationships between governmental agencies, industrial sectors, and academic organizations of both countries.

Mr. Masahiko Tominaga, Vice Minister of MIC said, “The next Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) will be held in 2019. This MoC is a landmark in the history of cooperation between Rwanda and Japan. Japan continues to work on solving various issues in Africa by utilizing high quality ICT infrastructure and utilizations”.

Commenting on the event, The Minister of Information Technology and Communications, Jean de Dieu Rurangirwa stressed on the benefit of the MoC.

“The signing of this agreement is going to beneficial for both of the countries: there will be sharing of various aspects in the field of ICT. Technology has been impacting lives of our people and the whole world. Our country has embraced it as a drive for quick development. Collaborating with other countries is a better way to share and learn from each other to cope up with the world’s ICT development.”

The Government of Japan is the leading donor of the ICT sector in Rwanda. In March this year, the Government of Japan has invited Hon. Minister Rurangirwa to Tokyo and Kobe city to introduce Japanese ICT sector and its technologies, and Hon. Minister has discussed with many governmental partners including MIC as well as Japanese ICT companies on potential areas of cooperation.

"ICT sector is one of the most important areas for the cooperation between Japan and Rwanda. The MoC will contribute to enhance the current partnership and develop further cooperation between the two countries,” said Mr. Takayuki Miyashita, Ambassador of Japan to Rwanda.

The signing ceremony was held during the Transform Africa Summit 2018, where a number of Japanese ICT companies participated and showcased their innovative technologies at the Japan Pavilion.

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