Jenny Ohlsson (born 1975) is a Swedish diplomat who has been serving as State Secretary to the Minister for International Development Cooperation Matilda Ernkrans in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Sweden) since November 2021. She was the first Swedish ambassador to Rwanda. [1]
Ohlsson attended the Pearson College UWC in Victoria, British Columbia between 1992 and 1994 and studied at Uppsala University from 1998 to 2007. [2]
Ohlsson joined the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 2002. Her assignments included working for the Africa Department, the Swedish embassy in Pretoria and the Swedish office in Kigali (from 2007 to 2009). Another assignment was working as counsellor in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Cabinet Office.
On a diplomatic level the diplomatic contacts of Sweden to Rwanda were upheld through the embassies in Nairobi and Kampala. The first Swedish representative in Rwanda in 1997 resided in a hotel room. The Swedish embassy in Kigali was opened in 2016. Jenny Ohlsson became the first Swedish ambassador to Rwanda residing in Kigali. [3]
Altogether with Aegis Trust, Sweden has decided to fully fund the Rwanda Peace Education in 2013. [4] Karongi Peace School was launched in 2017. and Ohlsson stated in her speech that she is honored to be here and that very little work in Rwanda had focused directly on reducing the behavioral risks of Genocide such as healing the divisionism, trauma and prejudices that were contributing factor to, and consequence of the 1994 Genocide. [4] As a spokesperson for Sweden feminist forum policy she added that women empowerment is important topic that leads to more peaceful society. [4]
In 2018, the Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) has signed a $20 million guarantee agreement for lending to the renewable energy sector with the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA). [5] During the event, Ohlsson stated how important it is to collaborate, in order to find innovative solutions and to reach the global goals for sustainable development.
Ohlsson's time as ambassador in Kigali ended in 2019. She is succeeded by Johanna Teague. [6]
Rwanda has diplomatic relations with most members of the United Nations and with the Holy See.
Caroline Gennez is a Belgian socialist politician who has been serving as the Minister of Development Cooperation and Urban Policy in the De Croo Government since December 2022. She is a former chairwoman of the Socialist Party – Different (SP.A) in Flanders.
Rwanda–United States relations are bilateral relations between Rwanda and the United States.
Development Bank of Rwanda, commonly referred to by its French name Banque Rwandaise de Développement (BRD), is a development bank in Rwanda. It is one of the banks licensed by the National Bank of Rwanda, the national banking regulator.
Russia–Rwanda relations refers to the bilateral relationship between the two countries, Russia and Rwanda. Russia has an embassy in Kigali.
Magnus Brunner is an Austrian politician of the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) who has been serving as European Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration since December 2024. Previously, he served as Austria's finance minister from 2021 until 2024 in the government of Chancellor Karl Nehammer.
Pierre Gramegna is a Luxembourgish career diplomat and politician of the Democratic Party who has been serving as managing director of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) since 2022. He previously, served as Minister for Finances in the government of Prime Minister Xavier Bettel from 2013 to 2022.
Edouard Adrien André Wattez is a French United Nations diplomat who worked for the United Nations for more than 32 years in the Asia-Pacific, Africa and Middle East Regions in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) agency, leading assignments mainly in crisis, peace building, post-war and transition countries such as Senegal, the Fiji Islands, Rwanda, Jerusalem, Cambodia, Vietnam and Sri Lanka.
Meryame Kitir is a Belgian politician of the Forward party who served as the Minister of Development Cooperation and Urban Policy in the De Croo Government from October 2020 until December 2022, although the last two months she was out on sick leave. She has also been serving on the Genk municipal council since 2019, and previously sat on the Maasmechelen municipal council from 2006 to 2016.
Elisabeth "Liesje" Schreinemacher is a Dutch lawyer and politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) who served as Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation in the fourth Rutte cabinet from 10 January 2022 to 2 July 2024. She previously served as a Member of the European Parliament from 2019 until 2022.
Hans-Joachim Fuchtel is a German lawyer and politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who served as a member of the Bundestag from the state of Baden-Württemberg from 1987 until 2021. From 2018 to 2021 he also served as Parliamentary State Secretary for Food and Agriculture in the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Andrej Šircelj is a Slovenian politician who has been serving as Minister of Finance in the government of Prime Minister Janez Janša since 2020.
Rwanda–Turkey relations are the foreign relations between Rwanda and Turkey. Turkey has an embassy in Kigali since December 2014. Rwanda's embassy in Ankara opened in August 2013.
Johanna Christina Teague is a Swedish diplomat who currently serves as Swedish Ambassador in Rwanda with residency in Kigali since August 2020. Before her appointment, she served as Group Manager at the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs' International Development Cooperation Agency. Previously, she had served as an Advisor to the Minister for Development at Sida in Stockholm and Bolivia, as well as for the UN's Populations Fund in La Paz (UNFPA)
Guillaume Kavaruganda is a Rwandan career diplomat who has spent the majority of his career serving in a number of diplomatic capacities.
Israeli–Rwandan relations refer to the bilateral diplomatic, economic, and cultural ties between the State of Israel and the Republic of Rwanda. These relations have seen significant growth and development in recent years, marked by high-level visits, the establishment of embassies, and various bilateral agreements.