Executive Mansion, Monrovia –Dr. Antoine Rutayisire, keynote speaker for today’s National Healing, Reconciliation, and Unity Program, hosted by His Excellency President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr. has arrived in the country.
Dr. Rutayisire arrived in Monrovia on July 4 and paid a courtesy visit to President Boakai at the Rehab Office. His participation in the National Program marks a pivotal moment in Liberia’s ongoing pursuit of truth, justice, and healing following years of conflict and national trauma.
Dr. Rutayisire is a survivor of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and a distinguished authority on peacebuilding and reconciliation across Africa. He currently serves as the Rwandan Team Leader of African Enterprise, a faith-based organization devoted to healing and renewal in post-conflict societies.
His life’s work has focused on restoring hope and unity in Rwanda, where he has played a central role in shaping and implementing the national reconciliation policy.
From 1999, Dr. Rutayisire served as a Commissioner on Rwanda’s National Unity and Reconciliation Commission, twice holding the post of Vice-Chairman. His leadership was instrumental in facilitating dialogue between perpetrators and survivors of the genocide and in promoting community-based reconciliation across the country.
Prior to his work on the Commission, he served as Rwanda National Secretary for the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) and held academic posts at the Rwanda National University and in Kigali’s secondary school system.
Dr. Rutayisire holds an MA in Applied Linguistics from the University of North Wales (UK, 1985–86) and an MA in Modern Literature and Curriculum Development from Rwanda University and PhD in Intercultural Studies with a focus on Transformative Leadership. He is a globally respected speaker on the subject of reconciliation and has delivered keynote addresses for World Vision and at Annual International Reconciliation Conferences hosted by Reconciliation New Works of Our World.
Drawing on his experience as a genocide survivor and reconciliation leader, Dr. Rutayisire brings a unique moral and spiritual voice to Liberia’s national healing process. He emphasizes that true reconciliation requires more than political settlements—it demands personal transformation, honest confession, forgiveness, and restorative justice, all grounded in faith and shared humanity.
President Boakai has prioritized national reconciliation as a cornerstone of his administration, vowing to honor the memory of victims of Liberia’s civil conflict, the Ebola epidemic, and the COVID-19 pandemic, while forging a future of unity.
Today’s event at the EJS Ministerial Complex, will bring together faith leaders, survivors, government officials, and citizens from across the country to reflect, remember, and recommit to national healing.
Dr. Rutayisire’s presence highlights Liberia’s resolve to draw lessons from global experiences and to walk a path toward genuine reconciliation and lasting peace.
