Mozambican President Daniel Chapo arrived in Kigali on Wednesday, August 27, on a two-day working visit, in which he will meet with his Rwandan counterpart, President Paul Kagame.
ALSO READ: Rwanda, Mozambique senior officials meet ahead of presidential visit
This is Chapo's first visit since his election as Mozambique's president, after winning 61 per cent of the votes in the October 2024 general elections.
Jurist-turned-politician?
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Daniel Francisco Chapo was born in 1977 in Sofala Province.
He is Mozambique's fifth president since the country's independence in 1975. Like his predecessor Filipe Nyusi, Chapo hails from FRELIMO party. He was sworn in as president on January 15, cementing his win over key challengers like independent candidate Venancio Mondlane, who got about 20 per cent of the votes in the election.
ALSO READ: Rwanda, Mozambique eye deeper defence cooperation
The socialist democratic party has governed the Southern African nation since its independence from Portugal. Chapo is a member of the party Central Committee.
A former governor of Inhambane Province in southern Mozambique, Chapo is a jurist and lawyer. He joined politics in 2011.
The law graduate and Frelimo's first presidential candidate born after independence was appointed governor of the province of Inhambane in 2016. Before that, he had taught constitutional law and political science.
Chapo holds a master's degree in development management from the Catholic University of Mozambique.
During his presidential campaign, Chapo promised peace and socioeconomic development. In particular, he pledged to restore peace in Cabo Delgado province in northern Mozambique, where Rwandan and Mozambican armed forces collaborate in the fight against terrorism since 2021.
"Attacking Cabo Delgado is the same as attacking all of us," Chapo declared as he concluded his campaign in the capital, Maputo, on October 7. "As Mozambicans, we feel the pain suffered in Cabo Delgado as the pain of all of us".
His visit to Rwanda is expected to facilitate deeper relations and cooperation in various areas, including defence and security.
Mozambican Minister of Defence Maj Gen Cristóvão Chume, who visited Rwanda a few days ahead of Chapo's arrival, said the two countries were exploring ways to deepen cooperation.
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"Terrorism is not only threatening Mozambique, but also Rwanda and the entire region," Chume told reporters in Kigali on Saturday. "Our efforts are common, and we discussed how to improve our response capability, particularly through training, intelligence sharing, and operational coordination."
