Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva met Rwandans living in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, updated them on Rwanda’s progress and highlighted opportunities for them to invest, share expertise, build partnerships and contribute to the country’s development priorities.
At the gathering in New York, Nsengiyumva briefed participants on Rwanda’s progress and thanked Rwandans abroad for their contribution to national development.
He identified investment, knowledge-sharing and business partnerships as practical ways for the diaspora to become more involved in Rwanda’s development beyond sending money home.
The latest annual figures released by the National Bank of Rwanda showed that remittances from Rwandans abroad reached $640 million in 2025, an increase of 27.3 per cent from $502 million in 2024.
The 2025 total was nearly 10 times the slightly more than $65 million recorded in 2010. The transfers help families meet education, healthcare and housing expenses, while also supporting savings and business activities.
Rwanda has also sought to connect the professional skills of its community in the United States with development needs at home.
A study published by the International Organization for Migration in 2023 drew on contributions from 460 Rwandans in the United States to examine their professional skills and interest in participating in development activities in Rwanda.
The study recommended short-term professional assignments for diaspora members already employed in the United States, online learning and mentoring programmes, and stronger communication to match available expertise with projects in Rwanda.
Rwanda has previously used diaspora expertise in education and healthcare. An IOM report on activities conducted in 2022 showed that 17 diaspora professionals trained lecturers at eight Integrated Polytechnic Regional Colleges in areas including ICT, agriculture, applied research and innovation.
The same report showed that 11 Rwandan medical professionals living abroad supported 10 hospitals through training and specialised services in surgery, nursing, neurology, clinical psychology and physiotherapy.
IOM has also run a programme connecting Rwandan financial specialists living in the United States and Canada with financial institutions in Rwanda for professional exchanges and knowledge transfer.
Nsengiyumva held the meeting while in New York representing President Paul Kagame at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Elie GATETE
RADIOTV10