Ouagadougou, 01 March 2019 - President Kagame arrived in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, at the invitation of President Roch-Marc Christian Kaboré to attend the 26th edition of the FESPACO. The festival features Rwanda as the Guest Country of Honor. 

On Friday evening, President Kagame attended a dinner hosted by President Roch-Marc Christian Kaboré of Burkina Faso where he was awarded, alongside President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta of Mali, the 'Grand Croix de l'Etalon'.

Speaking at the ceremony, President Kagame said: ‘’I wish to dedicate this recognition to the people of Rwanda, as Rwandans commemorate together, twenty-five years of a challenging, yet satisfying journey of recovery and nation-building. I also want to dedicate it to the friendship between the people of Rwanda and the people of Burkina Faso.’’

President Kagame expressed deep appreciation for Rwanda’s selection as the FESPACO Guest Country during the festival’s 50th anniversary.

President Kagame emphasized that Rwanda and Burkina Faso have much in common, ‘’starting with the resilience of our people, and our determination to uphold African dignity and values, as we work for a brighter future for our countries and our continent’’.

He added: ‘’we are here to share, learn, and collaborate with the best cinematic talents on our continent. Indeed, there can be no better place for pan-African cultural exchange than FESPACO. Through cinema, Africa has the power to conquer the world’s imagination and capture the strength and vulnerability of our collective struggles, with the full dignity they deserve. We should not fail to seize this opportunity.’’

President Kagame also attended a cultural soirée at the Malian Mission in Ouagadougou alongside President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta and First Lady Keïta Aminata Maïga of Mali, as well as President Roch-Marc Christian Kaboré and First Lady Sika Kaboré of Burkina Faso.

The Pan-African Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO) highlights the films of African filmmakers and mainly produced in Africa. The festival is in its 26th edition and is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Rwanda has been designated a country of honor in this great event. "The place reserved for Rwanda for this pan-African film event gives it the opportunity to demonstrate the country's potential for audiovisual and socio-economic development through various professional platforms proposed by the festival," said Espérance Nyirasafari, the Minister of Sports and Culture.

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