Rwanda’s ruling party RPF and China’s CPC mull deeper ties

By Gerald Mbanda

Hon. Hao Huijie, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shanxi Provincial Committee and Secretary of the CPC Yan’an Municipal Committee received by RPF Secretary General Hon. Gasamagera Wellars, at the RPF-Inkotanyi Headquarters.  (Photo courtesy: RPF Headquarters.)  

A high level delegation from China’s ruling party CPC   led by Hon. Hao Huijie, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shanxi Provincial Committee and Secretary of the CPC Yan’an Municipal Committee, was received in Rwanda by  RPF Secretary General Hon. Gasamagera Wellars, on Friday, at the RPF Headquarters in Rusororo, on the outskirts of the Rwandan capital Kigali. 

The two sides held bilateral talks aimed at strengthening cooperation between RPF and CPC, whereby two Memorandums of Understanding on Exchanges and Cooperation were signed specifically focusing on capacity building and museums and cultural heritage management. 

The RPF Secretary General Hon. Gasamagera Wellars expressed the RPF-Inkotanyi commitment to maintaining a dynamic and forward looking relationship with CPC, while on the side of the Chinese delegation, Hon. Hao Huijie expressed the commitment by CPC to put into action the signed MoU.

The newly signed MoUs build on past agreements signed in 2023, aimed at boosting collaboration across key areas such as governance and cadre Training. The CPC will support the RPF in enhancing its governance systems by helping establish and develop a cadre school, fostering professional training programs, and sharing analysis and history tools—design under recent MoUs for institutional learning. Drawing from China’s experience, RPF and CPC will collaborate on anti-corruption training, public administration methodologies, and policy innovation, which is part of a broad alignment under the Global Development, Security, and Civilization Initiatives. 

High level visits and exchanges between RPF and CPC are frequently held, and a sign of mutual and practical cooperation existing between the two parties. In January 2024, CPC’s Hon. Wang Huning hosted an RPF delegation led by the RPF Secretary General Hon.Wellars Gasamagera in Beijing, emphasizing dialogue under the Belt & Road framework and mutual commitment to a “community with a shared future.” In August 2024, Hon. Liu Jianchao met in Kigali with the same RPF delegation as part of China’s global initiative rollout—highlighting electoral respect,ideological alignment, and enhanced party-school cooperation. These interactions set the stage for theMoUs signed on Friday, representing continuity in a partnership that spans more than 30 years.

The signing of two MoUs between the RPF and CPC on Friday, June 20, 2025, shines a light on a mature and deepening inter-party alliance. By institutionalizing exchanges in governance, education, and policy—rooted in mutual respect and shared developmental visions—Rwanda and China demonstrate a renewed model of South–South cooperation.

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