According to the Office of the President at Village Urugwiro, President Kagame met the senior leaders on July 27, 2026, at Intare Arena.
A statement from the Presidency said:
“The meeting emphasized the importance of continuing to uphold the Party’s core values, including citizen-centered governance and accountability, in order to accelerate the implementation of the Party’s objectives for Rwanda’s continued development.”
The FPR-Inkotanyi, which has remained at the forefront of Rwanda’s development, was founded in 1987, a year marked by significant decisions and events that shaped the country’s political future. Its establishment was largely driven by Rwandan refugees who had spent nearly 30 years living in exile.
The formation of the movement followed remarks by then-President Juvénal Habyarimana, who was asked how Rwandan refugees who had lived abroad for three decades would return home. He reportedly responded that their return was impossible because “the country was like a glass already full of water.” To many refugees, the statement signaled that there was no intention to facilitate their return, prompting them to seek alternative means of reclaiming their homeland.
These developments coincided with reforms within the Rwandan Alliance for National Unity (RANU), an organization established in 1980 with the objective of helping Rwandan refugees return home.
By 1987, many Rwandan refugees, particularly those living in Uganda, had begun to experience greater stability following Yoweri Museveni’s rise to power, in a conflict in which many Rwandan refugees had participated.
At that point, RANU resolved to reorganize itself, recruit new members, and adopt fresh strategies to achieve its longstanding objective.
Tito Rutaremara, now Chairman of Rwanda’s National Consultative Council of Elders, was among RANU leaders tasked with establishing a political training school in Uganda. The school was designed to educate new members about RANU’s ideology and the strategies for achieving its goals.
The FPR-Inkotanyi Cadre School officially opened in June 1987, training members who would lead mobilization efforts, expand the organization’s membership, and ensure supporters clearly understood the cause they were working toward.
FPR cadres recruited university students, trained them, and then sent them out to educate and mobilize others. The idea was that a well-informed membership would spread the movement’s message more effectively while strengthening efforts to secure the refugees’ return to Rwanda.
These mobilization activities were carried out in refugee communities across Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania, Kenya, and what was then Zaire.
As RANU grew stronger, it convened a General Assembly in December 1987, bringing together members from across the diaspora.
One of the Assembly’s key resolutions was to rename the organization the Rwandan Patriotic Front (FPR-Inkotanyi).
The following year, members met again in Washington, D.C., in the United States, where they further refined their strategy and reaffirmed their commitment that they would only rest once they had returned to their homeland.
FPR-Inkotanyi leaders eventually concluded that achieving their objectives required a military wing. They therefore established the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA), which launched its first military offensive into Rwanda on October 1, 1990.
Many of the soldiers had previously served in Uganda’s armed forces, including senior commanders such as Maj. Gen. Fred Gisa Rwigema, who led the campaign in its early days, and Maj. Gen. Paul Kagame, who assumed command after Rwigema was killed.
Through considerable sacrifice and determination, the RPA continued the struggle, ultimately defeating government forces and bringing an end to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Under the leadership of FPR-Inkotanyi, Rwandans then embarked on rebuilding a nation founded on unity rather than division.
The Party says that values such as accountability and citizen-centered governance have produced measurable results.
Following the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, Rwanda’s economy—which had already been small before the tragedy—contracted by approximately 50%.
In 1995, Rwanda’s national budget stood at just RWF 56 billion, with more than 90% financed through foreign aid.
At that time, GDP per capita was approximately US$111.90, placing Rwanda among the world’s poorest countries.
Over the years, Rwanda has recorded significant economic progress. In 2025, the country’s economy grew by 9.4%, with Gross Domestic Product increasing to RWF 23.387 trillion from RWF 19.918 trillion in 2024.
The national budget for the 2026/2027 fiscal year reached RWF 7.7963 trillion, representing a 12% increase compared with the revised 2025/2026 budget of RWF 6.9521 trillion. Foreign borrowing for the fiscal year is projected to total RWF 1.9741 trillion.
Since liberation, Rwanda’s economy has grown at an average annual rate of approximately 7–8% over many years.
Life expectancy has also risen significantly, increasing from about 28 years in the aftermath of the Genocide against the Tutsi to nearly 70 years today.
