KIGALI, March 8 (Xinhua) -- Rwanda joined the world in celebrating International Women's Day Friday, reflecting on the role of Rwandan women in the country's development over the past three decades since the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi.

The day was marked under the theme "30 Years: Women in the Country's Development." Speaking at the national celebrations in the capital of Kigali, Rwandan President Paul Kagame hailed women's contribution to the country's socioeconomic development over the past 30 years.

Describing women as "pillars of the country's development," Kagame said Rwandan women played a key role in the country's liberation war in the 1990s and the reconstruction process.

He implored the nation to grant equal rights to women and girls. "She has rights, and her contribution to national development can't be denied," he said, stressing the need to involve women in leadership positions, where decisions are made not because they are women, but as a right.

According to the Rwandan Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion, women actively participate in the country's leadership positions, where they constitute 61.3 percent in the Chamber of Deputies, 42.4 percent in the Cabinet, and 37.5 percent in the Senate.

Bellancille Nyiramajyambere, head of the National Women's Council, said the government has empowered women in all sectors with women and young girls pursuing STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) courses, which were previously considered the preserve of men, participating in commercial agriculture, and using technology to boost the country's economic growth.

Stella Uwineza, one of the first Rwandan women to be promoted to the rank of colonel in the country's military, urged Rwandan parents to nurture their female children's inspiration and instill confidence in them, adding that "no dream is out of reach" based on one's gender. Enditem

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