A group of 100 Young mothers from the Munyaga sector Rwamagana district and 100 Women from Jabana sector, Gasabo district benefited from different pieces of training organized by Women for Women Rwanda from 1st September 2021 to date through a 12-month signature program that provides economically and socially marginalized women in Rwanda with the skills and resources needed to transform their lives socio-economically.
During the training, Women for Women Rwanda provided these women participants and teen mothers with support of stipends, skills, knowledge, and resources that create a sustainable change for women and their community at large.
She is an orphan, she crossed the border of Tanzania coming back to her motherland Rwanda, this happened when Rwandan refugees were threatened by Tanzanian citizens. her mother died on the way after being beaten by the thugs, when she arrived in Rwanda, she had nowhere to go but by miracles, someone connected her with her uncle resident in Bugesera and stayed there for some time, unfortunately, A man hit on her, promising to love her and take care of her and on top of that he promised to marry her, after some time she got pregnant and the man turned his back denying his responsibilities, from that time life has changed then she started moving around for surviving. She spent several nights in the streets of Rwamagana town and later on she headed to her grandparents to seek for shelter, they welcomed her with love and joy to see their granddaughter though she was pregnant this didn’t change their love for her. Life was not easy because she was the oldest child among the grandchildren living under their roof, she was the one to do all the necessary to feed the family. After giving birth, Women for Women Rwanda came to unroll young mothers to participate in their program lucky enough she was selected. Being part of young mothers to follow WfW-Rwanda programs was a huge opportunity for her and her siblings, the stipends received from WfW-Rwanda were used to solve financial issues at her home, and she managed to pay the school fees for them as well as buy the basic needs as her grandparents were old, weak and most of the time sick. Before joining the Women for Women Rwanda’s program, she had no idea how to save money but now she knows the importance of joining saving groups, and now she is able to plan for her earned money. She was so lonely, that she couldn’t join others but with the support from Women for Women, she is now social and lives well with her community. “I thank Women for Women Rwanda for the huge support, and I promise them to start up my small soap-making factory to secure my future,” said CENDERI Joyce, 25 years old resident of Gishike Village, Kaduha cell Munyaga sector.
According to Mukeshimana Venancie, life was not easy on that side of Kigali, she use to be lonely, and there were no means or a cause of gathering women together in social activities, she couldn’t think of how to do an income-generating activity, but after undergoing through Women for Women Rwanda’s program, she is happy with the level of her life today. “I am able to develop a business plan, and with the money I have saved in VSLAs, I will start up a small business to practice what I have learned and I am dreaming to have my own leather shoe factory”
Women participants were trained in Numeracy / Literacy targeting financial transaction business assets, liabilities, owners’ capital, revenues and expense records during sales, purchase tracking the balance sheet in connection with cash in hand using calculators as a tool of support.
They have as well been trained in business skills targeting the set goals by pitching a business idea, business plan, marketing, advertising, quality, and quantity.
In VSLA methodology they have been trained to afford simple savings through obtaining shares and loan facilities that they pay with interest whenever they meet on weekly basis using the phones that were provided to the groups through digitalization to be faster and more efficient in their counting system. This group shares out at the end of the circle and starts another circle when they graduate from the program.
Pieces of training on cooperatives whereby they learned principles of a cooperative, leadership skills, quality and quantity among others that lead to the formation of working together to generate an income through vocational skill training that they were trained in.
Trained women from Munyaga and Jabana were provided with resources and equipment, and have gone through vocational training in soap making and leather production, they are due to graduate by the end of August 2022.