Kigali, Apr 3 (IANS): Rwandan President Paul Kagame has been re-elected as chairman of the ruling party Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF-Inkotanyi) for a five-year term.

Kagame won 2,099 out of 2,102 total votes, defeating Abdul Karim Harerimana, at the party's 16th national congress held at its headquarters in Rusororo, on the outskirts of the capital Kigali, reports Xinhua news agency.

On the last day of the party's two-day national congress, which coincided with the party's 35th anniversary, party delegates gathered at the Intare Conference Arena and elected RPF's National Executive Committee, the party's leadership that includes the chairman, vice chairman, secretary general and 25 commissioners.

The party congress also saw the election of Consolee Uwimana to the position of vice chairperson.

Wellars Gasamagera was elected as the new party secretary-general, succeeding Francois Ngarambe.

Uwimana's election as vice chairperson makes her the first woman in the party's 35-year history to hold such a position.

According to the party constitution, at least 30 per cent of NEC members must be women.

There are also special slots designated for the youth among the commissioners.

Earlier during the congress's opening, Kagame said that the country and the party share the same ambition, sense of responsibility, expectation, and burden as any other country, irrespective of size.

The President emphasized accountability and sacrifice, calling them crucial elements in advancing the party and maintaining the achievements of the past few decades.