Rwanda

Chamber of Deputies

Political system
Presidential-Parliamentary
Structure of parliament
Bicameral
IPU membership
Yes

About parliament

Basic information such as the official name of parliament and details of its structure and leadership. Also includes the current breakdown of MPs by sex and age, and provisions for quotas and reserved seats.

Parliament name
Parliament (Parlement)
Chamber name
Chambre des Députés (Chamber of Deputies)
Structure & status of parliament
Lower chamber
Parliamentary term (years)
5

IPU membership

Affiliation periods
from 1971 to 1972
from 1982 to 1993
from 1995
IPU Geopolitical Group/s
African Group

Speaker

Official title
Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies
Speaker
Gertrude Kazarwa (Female)
Date of birth: 28 Dec 1964
Term
14 Aug 2024
Additional information

Elected on 14 Aug. 2024

Speaker terms

No information available

Secretary general

Official title
Clerk
Secretary General
Kambanda Jeannine (Female)
Term
13 Sep 2016
Notes

Appointed on 13 Sep. 2016.

Members

Statutory number of members
80

Notes:

Indirectly elected members: These include:

- 24 women by electoral colleges from each Province and the City of Kigali;

- Two members elected by the National Youth Council;

- One member elected by the Federation of the Associations of the Disabled.

Principal mode of designation of members
Directly elected
Directly elected members
53
Indirectly elected members
27
Current number of members
80
Men
29
Women
51
Percentage of women
63.8%
Statutory number of members per country
106
Population (in thousands)
13,954
Inhabitants per parliamentarian
131,642

Age

Data on the age of parliamentarians is collected at the start of the legislature, following the most recent elections. This data is not updated during the legislature, except when parliament notifies the IPU of a change in the youngest or oldest member.

Average age of all members
49.0
(2024-08)
Youngest member
Vanessa Umuhoza Gashumba (Female)
Youngest member (years)
28
Oldest member
Mussa Fazil Harerimana (Male)
Oldest member (years)
62
Number of members, by age (2024-08)
Breakdown of members by age and gender
18 - 20 21 - 30 31 - 40 41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 60 61 - 70 71 - 80 81 - 90 91 and over Totals per gender
Male 0 1 4 4 4 15 1 0 0 0 29
Female 0 2 4 14 11 20 0 0 0 0 51
Totals per age interval 0 3 8 18 15 35 1 0 0 0 80
Total <= 45: 29 Total >= 46: 51
Percentage of members, by age
Age at the last election or renewal Overall Male Female
Percentage of MPs 30 years of age or younger
3.8% 1.3% 2.5%
Percentage of MPs 40 years of age or younger
13.8% 6% 7.5%
Percentage of MPs 45 years of age or younger
36.3% 11% 25.0%

Reserved seats and quotas

There are reserved seats in parliament for certain groups
Yes
Women
24
Youth
2
Persons with disabilities
1
Electoral quota for women
Yes

Notes: ‘Twenty four (24) female Deputies shall be elected by specific organs in accordance with national administrative entities. A Presidential Order shall determine a national administrative entity and the number of women Deputies to be elected at each entity. At each entity through which election has been conducted, candidates who obtain more votes shall be considered as elected’ ( https://www.idea.int/data-tools/data/gender-quotas )

Sources: Constitution, Title IV, Chapter II, art. 76; Article 109 of Organic Law 03/2010/OL of 18 June 2010 governing presidential and legislative elections

Youth quota
Yes

Notes: Two seats are reserved for members aged 35 years or under, elected to the Chamber of Deputies by the National Youth Council.

Sources: Constitution, Article 76, 2003

Links to additional information

Parliamentary website
List of members
Rules of procedure/Standing Orders
Constitution

Historical data for IPU membership

Historical data for IPU membership
Year IPU membership
2020-09
List of values for 2020-09
No
2019-04
List of values for 2019-04
No
2018-06
List of values for 2018-06
No