Rwanda has clinched a landmark $228 million health-sector agreement with the United States just hours after a high-level peace recommitment meeting between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in Washington, marking the first major gain linked to the recently brokered peace efforts.
The deal, announced late Friday by the U.S. State Department and reported by Reuters, represents the second major partnership concluded under President Donald Trump’s newly launched America First Global Health Strategy.
The agreement is designed to strengthen Rwanda’s health system while advancing long-term financial self-reliance.
The funding decision followed a diplomatic meeting hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump that brought together Rwandan President Paul Kagame and DRC President Felix Tshisekedi to reaffirm their commitment to a U.S.-brokered peace deal signed in June, as well as last month’s economic integration compact.
“We’re settling a war that’s been going on for decades,” Trump said. “They spent a lot of time killing each other, and now they’re going to spend a lot of time hugging, holding hands, and taking advantage of the United States of America economically like every other country does.”
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Under the new agreement, $158 million in U.S. funding will support efforts to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other infectious diseases, while also strengthening outbreak preparedness and disease surveillance systems across Rwanda.
The initiative reflects the Trump administration’s results-driven aid model, which prioritises building resilient and independent health systems rather than maintaining continued reliance on external assistance.
In line with this approach, the Rwandan government has committed to increasing its domestic health spending by $70 million.
The State Department described the move as evidence of Kigali’s willingness to assume “greater financial responsibility as U.S. support is gradually reduced over the years.”
Rwanda’s Foreign Minister, Oliver Nduhungirehe, welcomed the deal, stating that it “underscores Rwanda’s ambition to build a self-reliant, adaptive, and technology-enabled health system.”
He highlighted Rwanda’s partnership with medical drone-delivery company Zipline as an example of the country’s innovation-led approach to strengthening healthcare delivery.
For Washington, the agreement represents a combination of geopolitical stabilisation and development cooperation.
For Kigali, it stands as both a strategic investment in public health and the first tangible benefit stemming from renewed U.S. engagement following peace efforts in the Great Lakes region.
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