Paul Kagame

Paul Kagame (born 1957) is a Rwandan politician and former military officer who has been president of Rwanda since 2000 and the country's de facto leader since 1994. Born into a Tutsi family that fled to Uganda when he was two, he served as a senior officer in the Ugandan army and then took command of the Rwandan Patriotic Front after its leader died at the start of the 1990 invasion of Rwanda. His forces ended the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi by winning the civil war. As vice president and minister of defence he controlled the army, and Rwandan backed rebels twice fought wars in Zaire and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. His government is credited with development gains in health, education and the economy, while human rights groups describe his rule as authoritarian and note that his elections have not been rated free or fair.