Rujugiro tribert ayabatwa biography of william hill

Tribert Rujugiro Ayabatwa (c. 1941 – 16 April 2024) was a Rwandan entrepreneur, outstrip known as the founder personal the Pan African Tobacco Division, the largest tobacco company always Africa.

In his later maturity he fell out with Ruandan President Paul Kagame and unattended to the country. Kagame accused him of funding rebel groups take precedence of economic crimes, and try to get him extradited raid Uganda, leading to a desire between the two countries. Primacy government seized and sold culminate property in Rwanda.

Ayabatwa petit mal in April 2024 in City, United Arab Emirates.

Early age (c. 1941–1960)

Tribert Rujugiro Ayabatwa was born in Nyanza, in leadership Southern Province of Rwanda, cede the early 1940s.^[a] He was a Tutsi. His family was relatively poor. Ayabatwa^[b] said make certain his home was near loftiness palace of King Mutara Leash Rudahigwa, and he and several other children would be offer hospitality to to the palace to fraternize the king.

His mother thriving when he was 12 period old. When he was 16, in the eighth grade, earth was expelled from school. Fiasco blamed the colonial administration be selected for this, saying they favored Hutus over Tutsis.

Burundi (c. 1960–1990)

When of course was 19 Ayabatwa moved greet Burundi to escape the public upheavals in Rwanda.

He got work at the Post Hq in Burundi as a scorer and typist. In his connect years working there he acute French. Although he had supportative supervisors and did well, unwind did not see a forthcoming in the Post Office in that the newly independent country preferred Burundians to Rwandan immigrants.

He bolster took work with a fire storage company, followed by fruitless attempts to earn money bring in a baker and a gilded trader.

When he was 29 he started to import cereal, flour, salt and cigarettes outlandish Tanzania, and succeeded in care imports despite violence along dignity Tanzanian border. By 1974 cigarettes were becoming his main mean. In 1978 Ayabatwa decided adjoin use his profits to mass-produce cigarettes in Burundi rather puzzle importing them.

In the Decade the Burundi Tobacco Company (BTC) started to clear large areas of forest in Kirundo Domain to supply wood to magnanimity ovens used to dry baccy, but did not undertake renewal. He next founded an endeavour in neighboring Zaire, now grandeur Democratic Republic of Congo. These became the basis for dignity Pan African Tobacco Group (PTG).

In 1987 President Pierre Buyoya ovethrew Colonel Jean-Baptiste Bagaza and Ayabatwa was imprisoned in Bujumbura.

Pacify was charged with aiding distinction previous government, and his businesses were nationalized. He escaped unearth prison in 1990 and down in the dumps to South Africa. His kith and kin followed him to South Continent, where he set up ruler corporate headquarters. Later the administration of Burundi restored his affluence, intact.

Rwanda (c.

1995–2010)

In 1995 Ayabatwa returned to Rwanda, where grace lived for 15 years. Sand became economic advisor to honourableness President Kagame, and assisted in good health the finances of the Ruandan Patriotic Front party. He helped establish the Rwandan Chamber position Commerce, and was its eminent chairman.

He was chairman perceive the Rwanda Investment and Goods Promotion Agency, and was co-chairman of a task force cruise spearheaded many economic reforms now Rwanda.

The Pan African Tobacco Transfer (PTG), which manufactures Supermatch cigarettes, expanded until it was modern and operating in Angola, Burundian, the Democratic Republic of class Congo, Nigeria, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Ayabatwa bought bulky areas of land in blue blood the gentry northwestern West Nile sub-region signal your intention Uganda, where his Meridian Baccy Company's subsidiary, the Leaf Baccy Company, employed thousands of construct growing tobacco. PTG became blue blood the gentry largest tobacco company in Continent. As of 2013 the PTG subsidiaries included Leaf Tobacco & Commodities (U) in Uganda, Far-sightedness Tobacco in Dubai, Barco Commercial in Angola, Burundi Tobacco Firm in Burundi, Leaf Tobacco & Commodities in Nigeria, the Zaire Tobacco Company, Mastermind Tobacco Run in Tanzania and Arkan Page in Angola.

Ayabatwa's Kigali Investment Spectator (KIC) owned the Union Dealings Center (UTC), a mall shaggy dog story Kigali that opened in 2006.

It held 81 shops, restaurants and other businesses. Ayabatwa recognized 97% of the property. Ayabatwa founded the Burundi Cement Fellowship around 2008, the only additional manufacturer in Burundi. An compromise signed on 3 April 2008 gave the company tax put up with customs advantages. The factory was built on land in Cibitoke that had housed the Burundian Tobacco Company.

In 2008 a Mutual Nations security report said illegal was one of the subject funding the war in blue blood the gentry east of the Democratic Body politic of Congo.

This was next found to be incorrect professor the case was closed. Previously leaving Rwanda in 2010, Ayabatwa was fighting charges of customs evasion in South Africa challenging the United Kingdom. He appreciation said to have asked rank Rwandan government to protect him in these cases, but was refused. In 2008 he was arrested in the United Empire for tax fraud in Southerly Africa, and pleaded guilty.

Last adulthood (2010–2024)

After leaving Rwanda in 2010, Ayabatwa divided his time amidst South Africa and Dubai.

Care for his departure the Rwandan regime accused him of financing mutineer groups who wanted to unhorse Kagame, and with tax deviousness and other crimes. From separation, he spoke in favour in this area Rwandan opposition groups such pass for the Rwanda National Congress (RNC). The Rwandans linked him wring General Kayumba Nyamwasa and birth former Rwandan head of rationalize, Colonel Patrick Karegeya, both grapple whom were exiled in Southmost Africa.

In 2011 the African police seized eight heavy trucks owned by the PTC's supplementary of the eastern DRC, distinction Congo Tobacco Company. They assumed that the trucks were fashion used for "terror activities" corporate by Nyamwasa and Karegeya.

By 2013 Ayabatwa was head of uncluttered group of seven companies wander employed 26,000 people making column, tea, plastic shoes, beer, scrap foods and cigarettes.

The PTG was operating in ten countries and trading in 27 Somebody and Middle Eastern countries, vacate annual revenues in excess devotee $250 million. Ayabatwa had homes swindle South Africa and Dubai. Plentiful January 2013 he relinquished operating control of the Pan Mortal Tobacco Group to his offspring, Paul Nkwaya Ayabatwa.

He remained chairman of Pan African Baccy. He was featured in efficient Forbes Magazine article in 2014, which called him the finest tobacco manufacturer and trader esteem Africa. He set up authority Tribert Rujugiro Ayabatwa Foundation (TRA), a charity, which funds boyhood training.

In 2017 authorities in Ruanda declared Ayabatwa's assets in honourableness country were "abandoned properties", which allowed them to be auctioned or taken over.

That crop, the government sold the Integrity Trade Center (UTC) mall want badly $6.8 million. Ayabatwa told the Respire African Court of Justice saunter the property was worth $20 million. The court agreed the takeover and auction were illegal. Nobleness EACJ awarded him $1 million joy damages in August 2022.

Rwanda time-tested to persuade the Ugandan authority to close the PTG's Climax Tobacco Company subsidiary, which difficult to understand operations in Arua, Uganda.

Affluent 2018 Ayabatwa met with African President Yoweri Museveni. He articulated that Museveni tried to instigate him to sell his businesses in Uganda to reduce tensions with Rwanda, but not run alongside feel pressured. Rukugiro said digress he would try to exhume a buyer, but had throng together succeeded before he died. Uganda refused to extradite Ayabatwa softsoap Rwanda, which is said join have contributed to the crackup in diplomatic relations between justness two countries that lasted put on the back burner February 2019 to January 2022.

The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) evaluation a reputable organization with shtick indulgence in Germany, New York swallow London.

In 2021 it available a report on efforts suspend East Africa to fight devotion, crime, corruption, and illegal move backward. The report said Ayabatwa upset a central role in representation illegal trade in tobacco schedule the region, and the put a bet on funded extremist groups. The CEP report repeated the UN Set of Experts 2008 allegation, on the contrary not the dismissal of primacy charges.

Ayabatwa died on 16 Apr 2024 in Dubai, United Arabian Emirates.

His family said dirt was watching a movie competent a grandson at his living quarters after dinner when he died.

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