American Pastor Paula White Joins Global Faith Leaders in Rwanda
American pastor Paula White, who leads the White House Faith Office, is currently in Rwanda as part of a delegation of top global faith leaders. The group includes Jennifer Korn Sporment, Assistant to the US President and Faith Director at the White House Faith Office, and Ghanaian Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams. On Thursday, November 6, the delegation met with President Paul Kagame and First Lady Jeannette Kagame.
The visit included participation in the Leaders Prayer Breakfast at the Kigali Conference and Exhibition Village on Friday. During the event, White shared her personal story with government officials, private sector leaders, diplomats, and senior religious figures. She spoke about her difficult past, which she believes shaped her path to becoming an advisor to the US President.
I lost my father at the age of five and was raped and sexually abused at only six. I wish that could be the only dark part of my history, but my life was a mess until I got saved, White said. There is no difficult situation that God can’t get you out of.
White also discussed how she faced criticism in the United States before President Trump established the Faith Office at the White House to strengthen ties with religious communities and appointed her to lead it. Her visit to Rwanda marks continued engagement between the two countries, highlighting shared interests in fostering spiritual values, social transformation, and global peace initiatives.
Currently, White serves as president of Paula White Ministries, the National Faith Advisory Board, and City of Destiny. She is also a pastor at StoryLife Church and hosts the Christian television program Paula Today.
At the same event in Kigali, Ghanaian religious leader and independent Charismatic preacher Nicholas Duncan-Williams praised Rwanda’s transformation, calling it a chosen nation destined to inspire black people. After visiting the Kigali Genocide Memorial, he said:
I can strongly say that God resurrected this nation that evil had planned to destroy. I believe this nation is chosen by God to teach other nations that everything is possible. I believe that the black man is not cursed, the Archbishop said.
Rwanda’s Transformation and Leadership
Sports Minister Nelly Mukazayire, the guest of honor at the event, delivered remarks emphasizing the importance of good leadership and nation-building. She reflected on Rwanda’s reconstruction from the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, which claimed more than one million lives, and the ongoing unity and reconciliation journey.
In a complex post-genocide environment, Rwandans have built an uplift nation where the child of a genocide perpetrator and the child of a genocide survivor have equal access to education, health care, and leadership positions, said Mukazayire. She also reflected on her personal story and how it sums up Rwanda’s unique experience: the daughter of a Genocide perpetrator who is now a Cabinet member.
That is the nation that has transformed its tragedy into a triumph, she said. I am just privileged to be standing here sharing my story, but there are a million Rwandans who have made it and have triumphed. And that is due to that inclusive, visionary and selfless leadership by His Excellency Paul Kagame. With God’s hand upon him, he turned bones into armies.
The Role of the Leaders Prayer Breakfast
The Leaders Prayer Breakfast is organized by Rwanda Leaders Fellowship. The organization also holds monthly gatherings targeting different sectors to pray and reflect on better ways to deliver good governance to the people they serve.