Ms Bella Rwigamba is Chief Digital Officer at the Ministry of Education in Rwanda. She holds a master’s degree in Information Systems Development from HAN University in the Netherlands. 

At the Ministry of Education, Bella oversees the digital transformation needs of General Basic Education, TVET and Higher Education. This includes defining policies and standards, digital literacy development, tools and content and EdTech innovation. She is also responsible for data governance and cybersecurity. Most recently, she has been involved in the implementation of an education management information system (EMIS).  

Her work involves leading digital transformation for around 4,900 schools with 3.9 million students.  

She works alongside other Ministry of Education affiliated agencies including the Rwanda Basic Education Board (REB), Rwanda TVET Board (RTB), Rwanda Polytechnic (RP), e University of Rwanda and the Higher Education council. One of her current focuses is developing the national ICT in Education policy, which was last revised in 2016, and creating networks.  

Some of the key challenges Bella is hoping to focus on during the fellowship include digital skills among teachers and students and infrastructure and devices, as well as working with private sector and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).