Chinese New ‘Year of the rabbit’ celebrated in Rwanda

Published: January 15,2023

By Gerald Mbanda

Rwanda foreign Affairs Minister Vincent Biruta (middle) and Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda Wang Xuekun, in traditional Chinese shirt together with invited guests. Photo courtesy:  Craish Bahizi

The Chinese embassy in Rwanda marked the celebration of the Chinese New “Year of the rabbit” on Thursday 12, 2023. The function was attended by the Chinese community, diplomats, government officials and friends of China. Normally the Chinese New Year begins on the new moon that appears around January 21 and February 20. In Rwanda the day was celebrated earlier.  In Chinese tradition, each year is named after one of 12 animals, which feature in the Chinese zodiac: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. Each of the animals has a year dedicated to it once every 12 years, in a cycle.

The Chinese New Year is one of the most important holidays in Chinese culture, which in Chinese; the festival is commonly referred to as the Spring Festival.

Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Vincent Biruta who was the guest of honor, praised the excellent bilateral relations and cooperation between Rwanda and China. He said that Rwanda considers China as a strong partner that has contributed to the socio-economic development of our country in various sectors that are key priorities areas including infrastructure, health, energy and education. In terms of trade and investment, China is one of the top trading partners of Rwanda, with imports and exports equivalent to USD 800M, in 2022.

 At the bilateral level, Minister Biruta said, that in 2021, China and Rwanda celebrated 50 years of long fruitful bilateral relations and cooperation which dates back to 1971. From its inception, the relationship has advanced into a great friendship and yielded countless initiatives between the two countries, as well as high-level visits including the historical visit to Rwanda of President Xi Jinping in 2018. He further mentioned that, Rwanda appreciates and commends the collaboration with China on a number of issues of mutual interest through important frameworks such as FOCAC which have been very instrumental in supporting Africa’s development efforts and Rwanda’s in particular.

The Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda His Excellency Wang Xuekun thanked  the Government of Rwanda and all friends who support the development of China-Rwanda relations, noting that last year witnessed fruitful cooperation between China and Rwanda in various sectors, including trade, infrastructure, agriculture, technology, health, education, and culture.

Ambassador Wang said that China cancelled a debt of 7.1 million US dollars to support Rwanda’s growth, and highlighted cooperation projects underway like Nyabarongo II Hydropower Plant, “smart education” and the ongoing expansion of Masaka hospital to make it one of the biggest hospitals in Rwanda.

“On the 5th China International Import Expo, coffee, dried-chili and other Made in Rwanda products caught attention of millions of Chinese customers, further advancing our agriculture and trade cooperation.  Last year, we also welcomed the visit of Amb. Xu Jinghu, Special Representative of the Chinese Government on African Affairs, setting a new start for more bilateral exchanges, ” Ambassador Wang Xuekun,  said. He also mentioned that more than 450 people benefited from 71 training programs conducted by China in different fields. Table tennis and Kung-fu competitions attracted local and regional players and enhanced our people-to-people exchanges.

The occasion was also graced by Rwandan youth who displayed karate skills they have acquired through training by Chinese instructors, hence promoting people-to people exchanges.

Photo courtesy:  Craish Bahizi

Photo courtesy:  Craish Bahizi

Gerald Mbanda is a Researcher and publisher on China and Africa.  

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