President Paul Kagame has reconstituted part of Rwanda’s Upper House by appointing four senators, Prof. Jean Pierre Dusingizemungu, Evode Uwizeyimana, Dr. Valentine Uwamariya, and Alfred Gasana.
The appointments, announced on October 21, 2025, come as the five-year term of four outgoing senators, Jean-Pierre Dusingizemungu, Epiphanie Kanziza, André Twahirwa, and Evode Uwizeyimana, officially comes to an end on October 22.
The latest presidential move, made in accordance with Article 80 of Rwanda’s Constitution, renews the mandates of Prof. Dusingizemungu and Uwizeyimana for a second term, while ushering in two new members, Dr. Uwamariya and Gasana, into the Senate.
The changes mark a continued effort to balance experience, gender representation, and institutional continuity within the Upper House of Parliament.
Continuity and renewal in the Upper House
Dusingizemungu and Evode Uwizeyimana are both returning senators, having first been appointed in October 2020. Their reappointment underscores the President’s confidence in their legislative experience and contributions over the past five years.
Dusingizemungu, who holds a PhD in Mental Health, is well known for his decades-long advocacy for genocide survivors. Before joining the Senate, he led IBUKA, the umbrella organization representing survivors of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, and lectured in psychology at the former National University of Rwanda from 1994 to 2010.
Uwizeyimana, a legal scholar with a PhD in Law, has also played a central role in Rwanda’s legislative and justice sectors.
Between 2016 and 2020, he served as State Minister in the Ministry of Justice in charge of Constitutional and Legal Affairs, and earlier as Deputy Chairperson of the Law Reform Commission. He was also part of the 2015 Constitutional Review Commission.
Their renewed presence in the Upper House reflects both continuity and expertise in the Senate’s constitutional and governance oversight role.
New entrants bring executive experience
Dr. Valentine Uwamariya and Alfred Gasana join the Senate with extensive leadership backgrounds in the Rwandan government. Both are former cabinet members whose careers have spanned education, gender equality, environment, and internal security portfolios.
Uwamariya holds a PhD in Chemistry from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa and an advanced degree from IHE-Delft in the Netherlands.
Her career began in academia as Deputy Vice Chancellor for Training, Development, and Research at Rwanda Polytechnic before she was appointed Minister of Education in December 2020.
She later served as Minister of Gender and Family Promotion in 2023 and then as Minister of Environment in 2024, a role she held until July 2025.
Alfred Gasana, on the other hand, brings strong experience from the security and legislative sectors. He was appointed Minister of Internal Security in December 2021 and later served as Rwanda’s Ambassador to the Netherlands in June 2024.
Before joining the cabinet, he served as a Member of Parliament from 2010, sitting on the Political and Legal Affairs Committee.
Their appointments to the Senate are widely seen as strategic, given the chamber’s oversight role and its focus on governance, national security, and justice-related legislation.
Structure and role of the Senate
Rwanda’s Senate, as provided under Article 80 of the Constitution, comprises 26 members drawn from diverse backgrounds and appointment mechanisms.
Twelve senators are elected by specific electoral colleges representing administrative entities, four are nominated by the National Consultative Forum of Political Organisations (NFPO) and two are elected by academic and research staff from higher learning institutions, one from public and another from private universities.
The President appoints the remaining eight. Former Heads of State who have completed their terms or resigned voluntarily may also become senators upon request and approval by the Senate Bureau.
Importantly, at least 30 per cent of senators, whether appointed or elected, must be women, ensuring gender parity in national decision-making.
The Senate’s core constitutional responsibilities include upholding fundamental national principles such as preventing genocide, combating discrimination, promoting unity, and ensuring respect for the rule of law.
It also plays a vital role in vetting senior government appointments, scrutinizing legislation, and advising on national finance bills.
