Soraya Hakuziyaremye Appointed Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda

Rwandan president Paul Kagame has appointed Soraya Hakuziyaremye as the new Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda (BNR), making her the first woman to lead the central bank. She succeeds John Rwangombwa, who completed two consecutive six-year terms after serving as Governor since February 2013.

Hakuziyaremye brings extensive experience in government, finance, and international relations, with a particular focus on financial sector development, risk management, and strategic policymaking. Before assuming her new role, she served as Deputy Governor of BNR since March 2021.

Previously, she was Rwanda’s Minister of Trade and Industry from October 2018 to March 2021.

Hakuziyaremye’s career spans multiple international financial institutions. She previously served as Senior Vice President and Credit Risk Manager at ING Bank in the UK, where she oversaw credit risk for financial institutions and global markets.

From 2012 to 2014, she was a Senior Advisor to Rwanda’s Minister at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation. Earlier in her career, she gained expertise in audit, risk management, and corporate actions for global asset management clients while working at BNP Paribas Group/Fortis Bank and The Bank of New York Mellon.

She holds a Master’s degree in Business Engineering from Solvay Business School in Belgium and a Postgraduate degree in International Management from Thunderbird Graduate School in the USA. In 2024, she completed the Executive Public Leaders Program at Oxford University.

Beyond her professional roles, Hakuziyaremye is a co-founder of the Brussels-Africa Hub and currently serves as a Board Member of Ngali Holdings.