Should Foreign Affairs Minister and government spokesperson Louise Mushikiwabo’s bid to lead the International Organisation of La Francophonie succeed this October, it will leave one of the most powerful dockets vacant.

This has raised speculation about who could become Rwanda’s next top most diplomat.

The International Organisation of La Francophonie is an association of predominantly French speaking countries most of which are former French colonies and a good number are in Africa.

“Of course all things depend on Ms Mushikiwabo being elected. It is an election with other contenders,” said Phillipe Kassaijja Apuli who teaches international relations and diplomacy at Makerere University and a visiting lecturer at Rwanda Defence Force Command and Staff College.

Ms Mushikiwabo has been Rwanda’s Foreign Affairs Minister for the past nine years. Before taking up the post, Rwanda has had eight foreign ministers with some serving for just a few months, which makes her the longest-serving official.

It is a position perennially preoccupied with fending off attempts to isolate Rwanda over alleged involvement in conflicts in the restive and mineral-rich neighbour to the east, Democratic Republic of Congo.

She joined the ministry after a stint at the defunct ministry of information. She was little known in RPF politics.

An orator, Ms Mushikiwabo is also fluent in French and English.

Likely successors:

Olivier Nduhungirehe

As a State Minister for Foreign Affairs, he is the second top diplomat which makes him a probable successor of Ms Mushikiwabo.

Having joined the government in 2014, Amb Nduhungirehe is a relatively new entrant to the political scene. He has had short stints at the ministries of trade and agriculture before starting a career in diplomacy, which began when he was appointed first counsellor at Rwanda Embassy in Ethiopia in 2007.

In an interview in 2015 after he was appointed Rwanda’s ambassador to Brussels, he told Izuba Rirashe newspaper that his political work started at age 16 when he got involved in political activism.

He attributes this to his father’s involvement in the restoration of multiparty politics in the 1990s. His father was a founding member of PSD, one of parties in a coalition with RPF since 1994. Amb Nduhungirehe is a senior member of the party.

Apart from being a senior diplomat he has a political constituency, which observers say is another advantage. Amb Nduhungirehe is a rising star within PSD and is likely to climb the political ladder even further.

Having studied and worked in the West, he resonates well with those living abroad. Vocal political opponents of RPF are based in Western Europe, America and recently in South Africa.

Still in his 40s, he easily connects with the youth who like his active participation in social media debates. This is an asset the government would want to use in political mobilisation. However, his personal views on social media may be mistaken as official government position.

His critics say this is not good for a top diplomat and will work against him.

He is confident when talking to the media and has a good rapport with the fourth estate. This strengthens his bid for the post. He is fluent in French and English.

Valentine Sendanyoye Rugwabiza:

She is the current head of Rwanda’s Permanent Mission at the UN and she is also a member of the Cabinet. Before going to the UN, she headed the Rwanda Development Board and the Ministry of EAC Affairs.

Previously, she served as Rwanda’s ambassador to Switzerland.

She speaks English and French and was a senior director at the World Trade Organization (WTO). Previously, she worked for the Swiss pharmaceutical giant F. Hiffimann-La Roche offices in Africa.

Her involvement in WTO and a multinational firm means she is not new to business negotiations. Rwanda badly needs private businesses to sustain its economic growth and particularly offer employment to the youth who form the largest number of the population.

However, her biggest advantage could be her current posting at the UN where she is at the frontline of pushing through Rwanda’s diplomatic agenda in the community of nations.

Rwanda is located at the heart of the volatile and conflict-prone Great Lakes Region and is asserting itself as a key player in the region’s ever changing geopolitics.

The soft-spoken but articulate diplomat could gain from Rwanda’s progressive gender policy that encourages women to vie and occupy top political offices.

Ambassador James Kimonyo:

A civil engineer by training, he served as ambassador to the United States in 2007, and non-resident ambassador to Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Chile.

Previously, he was a prefect of Kibungo prefecture in Eastern Province. After the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, he was appointed to head the department of rehabilitation and reconstruction under the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Amb Kimonyo abandoned his Social Democratic Party and joined RPF saying it had better policies and was hard to defeat. He is another diplomat to watch.

RPF women - Monique Mukaruliza:

She is Rwanda’s High Commissioner to Zambia and Permanent Representative to COMESA.

Previously, she headed the former ministry of affairs and northern corridor project in the Office of the President and was Mayor of City of Kigali, which has had two mayors after her.

Those who have worked with her say she is an efficient technocrat. When she assumed office in Lusaka she promised to ensure Rwanda delivers on its obligations under COMESA protocol such as facilitation for cross-border trade and climate change mitigation.

Aisa Kirabo Kacyira:

Dr Aisa Kirabo Kacyira is the deputy executive director and assistant Secretary-General of UN-Habitat since November 2011, where she provides leadership in promoting sustainable urbanisation and human settlements globally — a role that involves engagement with governments and non-governmental actors.

A veterinary doctor by training and before joining UN-Habitat, Dr Kirabo served as the Governor of the Eastern Province and Mayor of Kigali. She has vast experience in government and nongovernment offices.

Previous foreign affairs ministers:

They include Jean Marrie Vianney Ndagijimana who served for four months in 1994. He was followed by Dr Anastase Gasana, a former university lecturer who participated in the failed Arusha Peace Accord negotiations. He later fled to exile.

These were tough times for many government officials, but more so for those in foreign relations — being a foreign minister of a country emerging from genocide.

Between 1999 and 2009, there was Amri Sued, Dr Augustin Bumaya (now head of Elders Advisory Council), Andre Bumaya and Dr Charles Muligande, now deputy Vice Chancellor for Institutional Advancement at University of Rwanda.

Amb Rosemary Museminali served between 2008 and 2009 and it’s during her tenure that Rwanda was admitted into the Commonwealth, she had previously served as ambassador to the UK.