Over 11,000 individuals linked to corruption in Rwanda over five years

Rwanda’s Prosecutor General, Habyarimana Angelique, has revealed that the National Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA) has investigated over 11,000 individuals for corruption-related offenses in the past five years.

She made this statement on March 14, 2025, during a consultative meeting held at the Rwandan Parliament.

Habyarimana highlighted the growing prevalence of corruption cases and emphasized the need for stricter measures to track and eradicate the vice.

She stated, “Both those who offer bribes and those who solicit them face equal punishment. Additionally, corruption crimes do not have a statute of limitations, which is a significant legal step forward to ensure that, whenever evidence emerges, individuals can be held accountable.”

She acknowledged that gathering evidence in corruption cases remains a challenge, as both givers and receivers continuously devise new tactics to evade detection.

Regarding asset recovery from corruption-related offenses, she noted that a major challenge lies in individuals registering their properties under different names, making it difficult to reclaim illicitly acquired wealth.

She stressed the importance of thorough case investigations and inter-agency collaboration in sharing information to facilitate evidence collection.

Habyarimana revealed that, over the past five years, the NPPA investigated 6,111 case files involving more than 11,000 individuals accused of corruption-related offenses.

According to the NPPA report, in 2019, the prosecution received 1,240 cases involving over 2,925 individuals. Of these, 757 were taken to court, while 363 were dismissed.

In 2020-2021, 1,224 cases involving 2,191 individuals were received. Among them, 751 were taken to court, 455 were dismissed, and 18 remained under review.

For 2021-2022, 1,199 cases were received, involving 2,195 individuals. Of these, 598 were taken to court, 502 were dismissed, and 99 remained under investigation.

In 2022-2023, the NPPA handled 1,378 cases involving 2,610 individuals. Among them, 616 were taken to court, 632 were dismissed, and 130 remained under investigation.

The number of cases entering the courts decreased in 2023-2024, with 1,070 cases involving 1,937 individuals. Of these, 474 were taken to court, 467 were dismissed, and 130 remained under review.

Habyarimana further explained that dismissed cases were based on legal grounds, such as resolving the issue through mediation, recovering the embezzled funds, or insufficient evidence.

The NPPA reported a conviction rate of 76.5% in corruption-related cases, based on the presented evidence.

“Each year, the success rate in court has improved. Overall, our conviction rate stands at over 90%, but in cases of economic crimes such as corruption, it is relatively lower. However, we observe a steady improvement.”

She acknowledged the challenges in combating corruption, including the use of advanced technology by perpetrators, limited expertise in detecting corruption schemes, fear of reporting cases, and the concealment of information by those benefiting from corrupt dealings. However, she affirmed that efforts are being strengthened through inter-agency collaboration to enhance the capacity of prosecutors and investigators.

The Prosecutor General also disclosed that, over the past five years, 13 NPPA staff members were suspected of corruption. Among them, 10 were prosecuted, two are still under investigation, and three were dismissed from their positions due to conduct linked to corruption.