Rwanda
Country page last updated February 2010
Rwanda Fact Sheet - November 2008
English version (PDF 64KB)
MDRP Rwanda Activities at a Glance
Finances
  • Total $65.5 million (Multi-donor Trust Fund: $14.4 million | IDA $30.6 million| DFID: $8.8 million | Germany: $8.6 million| Government of Rwanda: $2.7 million| African Union: $342,000)
Activities
  • National program targets 36,000 ex-combatants of the Rwanda Defense Force (RDF) and Rwandese armed groups, including 2,500 children.
Progress
  • The program closed on December 31, 2008.
  • 29,641 demobilized. 44,366 beneficiaries received reinsertion support.
  • The deterioration of the security situation in eastern DRC significantly slowed down the demobilization and repatriation of the remaining armed groups in eastern DRC.
Table last updated August 2009
 

Background

In October 1990, the Rwandan Patriotic Front, consisting of Rwandan refugees, invaded Rwanda from Uganda. The fighting continued until the signing of the 1993 Arusha Peace Accords. Implementation of the Accords was hindered, however, by key elements of the governing regime. The death of President Habyarimana in April 1994 unleashed a genocide, during which at least 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed and three million Rwandans displaced, most of whom fled to refugee camps in the DRC.

Hidden in the crowd were many genocidaires and former soldiers of the FAR. Using refugee camps as staging and recruiting grounds, they began to launch attacks into Rwanda. This led the Government of Rwanda (GoR) to support Laurent-Désiré Kabila, who had promised to oust Mobutu, and in 1996 the camps were forcibly disbanded and many refugees returned to Rwanda. However, after taking over power in DRC, the relationship between Kabila and Rwanda soured. In 1998, the GoR supported a new rebel movement, the Rassemblement Congolais pour la Démocratie (RCD) with the goal of ousting Kabila. The Rwandan Patriotic Army next entered the DRC in support of the RCD. Following the Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement of July 1999 and the Pretoria Agreement of July 2002, Rwanda completed a withdrawal of its troops from the DRC in October 2002.

Thirteen years after the genocide, security has been restored within Rwanda and the country is enjoying significant economic growth. However, an estimated 7,000 combatants associated with the defeated ex-FAR and the Interahamwe militia, now aligned as the Forces Démocratiques pour la Libération du Rwanda (FDLR), continue to operate in the eastern DRC. In the fall of 2008, while the situation in the DRC was deteriorating, the Government of Rwanda started an enhanced cooperation with the DRC to fight against the FDLR and other rebel groups operating in the region.

 

 

 

 

National Program

Name:

Rwanda Demobilization and Reintegration Program (RDRP)

Implementing Agency:

Technical Secretariat of the Rwanda Demobilization and Reintegrtion Commission (TS/RDRC)

Financing:

$65.5 million (Multi-donor Trust Fund: $14.4 million | IDA : $30.6 million| DFID: $8.8 million | Germany: $8.6 million| Government of Rwanda: $2.7 million| African Union: $342,000)

Status:

Closed December 31, 2008

Objectives:

The program aimed to support the consolidation of peace in the Great Lakes region and foster reconciliation within Rwanda. The four principal objectives of the Program were:

  • demobilize an estimated 36,000 ex-combatants from the RDF and members of armed groups, and support their transition to civilian life;
  • in the spirit of the Arusha Agreement, support the reinsertion of ex-FAR;
  • support the social and economic reintegration of all ex-combatants to be demobilized in stage II and all stage I excombatants who remain socio-economically vulnerable; and
  • facilitate the reallocation of Government expenditure from defense to social and economic sectors.

Overall Progress Table:


Final Progress Update:

  • 29,641 demobilized. 44,366 beneficiaries received reinsertion support.
  • The deterioration of the security situation in eastern DRC significantly slowed down the demobilization and repatriation of the remaining armed groups in eastern DRC.

 

 

Special Projects

None.

 

Country Documents

The following documents will help you better understand the country and its context.


Program Documentation:

Technical Annex - Rwanda Emergency Demobilization and Reintegration Project (The World Bank)

Other Documents:

The Leadership of Rwandan Armed Groups Abroad with a Focus on the FDLR and the RUD/Urunana - December 2008
Link to RDRC webpage

RDRP Annual Report 2005 (PDF 1126KB)

Brochure de la Commission Rwandaise de Démobilisation et de Réintégration (PDF 496KB)

Rwanda Demobilisation and Reintegration Commission Brochure (PDF 503KB)

Arusha Peace Accords, 1993

Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement, 1999

Pretoria Agreement, 2002

UN map of Rwanda


News:

Article - Demobilization program builds homes for ex-combatants
World Bank —
August 12, 2009
English

Article - Turning ex-child soldiers into able citizens
IRIN —
September 30, 2008
English

The Rwanda Demobilization and Reintegration Program: Reflections on the Reintegration of Ex-Combatants
Dissemination Note n° 5 — August - September 2008
English (PDF 250 KB)

Article - Born of war - Child Soldier - Muhazi, Rwanda
Saturday's Globe and Mail - March 2, 2008


Documentary - CTVglobemedia - March 2, 2008
Born of war - Child soldiers who escape from Congo have survived years of brutal warfare. Their challenge now is to fit back into a life they barely remember
8 minute documentary - Muhazi, Rwanda

N&N - January 10, 2008
Rwandan Ex-combatants Succeed in Bakery Project
(Eng-PDF 175KB)
(Fr-PDF 175KB)

Article - All Africa/ DowJones - January 2, 2008
Un ancien enfant-soldat - Quand l'amour familial succède à celui des armes! (in French) - Rwanda
(Fr-PDF 21KB)

Article - All Africa/ DowJones - December 26, 2007
1600 Soldiers Demobilised - Rwanda
(Eng-PDF 61KB)

Article - (Rwanda/Democratic Republic of Congo) -States News Service - November 16, 2007
Great Lakes Contact Group Communique
(Eng-PDF 12KB)

Article - Rwanda exiles reared for new genocide
The Sunday Times - October 28, 2007
(Eng-PDF 309KB)

Article - (Rwanda) World Bank website - August, 2007
IDA IN ACTION : POST CONFLICT, To Demobilize and Reintegrate Rwandan Ex-combatants (in French)
(Fr-PDF 54KB)

N&N - July 17, 2007
Interview with John Zigira: Commissioner of the Rwandan Demobilization and Reintegration Commission
(Eng-PDF 97KB)
(Fr-PDF 97KB)

Article - (Kigali) UN Integrated Regional Information Networks/AllAfrica - February 16, 2007
Une armée active dans la lutte contre le sida (Article in French)
(Fr-PDF 25KB)

Article - (Kigali) The New Times, February 16, 2007
Ex-Combatants Attend Half-Year Skills Training
(Eng-PDF 21KB )

N&N - February 2, 2007
A Rwandan Woman Ex-Combatant Succeeds in Her Business
(Eng-PDF 78KB)
(Fr-PDF 67KB)

Article - (Rwanda) World Bank website - August, 2007
IDA IN ACTION : POST CONFLICT, To Demobilize and Reintegrate Rwandan Ex-combatants
(in French) (Fr-PDF 54KB)

Article - (Kigali) - The New Times, November 6, 2006
Rwanda: Demobilisation Report to Be Presented in France

N&N - June 29, 2006
Rwandan Milk Association: Ex-combatants, Civilians Working Together for Success
(Eng-PDF 221KB)
(Fr-PDF 221KB)

Article - The New Times - November 11, 2005
Rwanda. WB, UNIFEM target female ex-soldiers
(Eng-PDF 17KB)

 


 
 

Contacts

World Bank Blvd. de la Révolution
SORAS Building
Kigali
RWANDA

Marcelo Jorge Fabre
Email: [email protected]
phone: +1 202 473 8477
Fax: +1 202 473 8229


Government Agency

Rwanda Demobilization and Reintegration Commission
P.O. Box 7277
Kigali
RWANDA

Jean Sayinzoga
Chairman
Email: [email protected]

 

Relevant Links

This page contains various links to help you better understand the country and its context.

The World Bank: Rwanda

allAfrica.com: Rwanda

Amnesty International: Rwanda

Human Rights Watch: Rwanda

Institute for Strategic Studies: Rwanda

Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN): Rwanda

International Crisis Group: Rwanda

ReliefWeb: Rwanda

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP): Rwanda


Arusha Peace Accords, 1993

Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement, 1999

Pretoria Agreement, 2002




Website links provided on this website are for informational purposes only. Their inclusion does not imply MDRP endorsement of or responsibility for the information included therein.

The views expressed in this website, documents or web links posted on this site are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the MDRP Secretariat, the MDRP Partnership or the World Bank.