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Meeting the Generation Rwanda Interns – February 6, 2011

Feb6

One of the highlights of this trip was meeting the six Rwandan university students who did such an amazing job working with Katie to conduct our 19 Focus groups in Rwinkwavu last spring. They are sponsored by our partner organization Generation Rwanda, formerly Orphans of Rwanda, providing each student a university education and coordinating internship opportunities with professionals, businesses and organizations.

For 2 months last April/May the students traveled out to Rwinkwavu with Katie once a week to meet separately each time with 2 or 3 different groups of community members from different villages in the sector. In addition to gathering feedback on programming needs, they served as Ambassadors for the Library/Learning Center giving us the opportunity to introduce the project, build trust and encourage local buy-in.

L-R Betsy, Yassin, Diane, Katie, Console, Justine, Tharcisse, Simon

L-R Betsy, Yassin, Diane, Katie, Console, Justine, Tharcisse, Simon

We gathered at the Laico Hotel in Kigali for some Mutzig, the local beer on tap, and Fanta. It was wonderful to finally meet the students and thank them for a job well done in person, get to know their stories and hear their plans for the future. We have one lawyer in the group, Yassin Nsabimana, who graduated in December and is now working in a Kigali based law firm. However, with the government’s push to advance Rwanda as an information hub in the region many of the students are majoring in computer science/business. We are planning to offer internships to computer science students in their final year of study to help do training in this area at the Center when it opens.

I found that the girls were just as ambitious and confident as the guys, which really impressed me. Rwanda is a country where 51% of the Parliament is comprised of women. The Rwandan government recognizes that girls and women are a powerful force for change. Harnessing this valuable resource will be a key factor in helping to break the cycle of poverty. We are very committed to developing girls and women specific strategies and programming.

I look forward to our continued collaboration with Generation Rwanda. One thing for sure, with young people like these, the future of Rwanda is in good hands!

Fall 2010 – Update

Jan26
2010 closes with the great news that we will be breaking ground on February 7th!! Though it’s taken longer than we anticipated due to the uncertain economic environment, we have used that time well in preparing for what will take place in the building once we open the doors. We see the seeds of the vision we planted two and half years ago spreading its roots through our network of new and existing partners. The Rwinkwavu community continues to rally around the Rwinkwavu Community Library/Learning Center (RCLLC) and the promise it holds. Last March, Katie Uher, RfR Program Director, and our Rwandan university student interns conducted a series of 19 focus groups in Rwinkwavu to help determine the programming and scheduling needs of the community. It was a great opportunity, through these students, to connect with the leaders of the villages (umudugudus) in the sector to encourage local buy-in, build trust and make it clear that the success of the project relieves heavily upon Rwandan participation. We got so much valuable feedback from all the groups and they were amazed that we took the time to ask what they want/need. The Grandparents we interviewed, as is the case with the majority of older people, hadn’t gotten past Primary 2. They hope to learn enough English to be able to give directions to tourists on their way to Akagera Game Park and said “…most of us have eye problems, it would be helpful if we have reading glasses at the library to help us during literacy training.” Primary 6 girls were adamant that we educate their parents about birth control and the importance of girls going to school. To echo that, the older out-of-school girls are yearning for educational and job opportunities. As one girl said,” We are facing many problems caused by poverty and ignorance. So I would like to ask you to emphasize programs designed for the youth to help us improve our conditions of life.” The community women were unanimous in their request that the RCLLC “…should train us how to become an entrepreneur…how to earn income through small jobs.” The RCLLC is the only facility in the area suitable for housing the programming we plan to make available. True to our belief that collaboration not duplication is more efficient and effective, we continue to lay the groundwork for building solid partnerships and programming. Katie has researched African sources for books, learning materials and programming. In December, while taking a month-long Cambridge University certified ESL literacy training course in Cape Town, South Africa, she visited many of these sources: publishers, programming, audio books, educational toys and learning aids and more. Additional sources have been identified in Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania. Purchasing in Africa presents literacy in an African context, supports the African publishing industry and cuts down on the cost of shipping. In October Katie met with the top Clinton Foundation people in Rwanda. They are collaborating with Soyco in building an oil processing plant and cultivating soy fields near the Library/Learning Center, which will bring 1600 new jobs to the District. Soyco and Clinton Foundation plan to provide job skills and financial management training and are very interested in using the Library/Learning Center for this training and collaborating on programming. While the Library/Learning Center is under construction Katie will implement a pilot literacy program in Rwinkwavu in March. We will be able to assess, fine-tune and tailor the programming to best suit the needs of community, so we are ready to roll out the programming when the RCLLC opens its doors. To that end we recently met with LitWorld (www.litworld.org) head-quartered in New York, who has developed and executed excellent community-based literacy and literacy leader training programs in New York, Kenya, Liberia, Ghana and Iraq. They educate community members to become literacy leaders/trainers through easy-to-use programs and materials. We have identified several areas to start off our work together: preschool planning and curriculum, Girls Club/mentoring and on March 9th we will be participating in LitWorlds second “World Read Aloud Day”. Katie will be organizing Rwinkwavu community-wide participation. Allen Moore and I are heading over to Rwanda January 28th in preparation for our February 7th groundbreaking celebration. We have a lovely program organized and representatives from the Ministry of Sports and Culture, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health will be attending as well as the Mayor and other local officials and the community. We’ll be sure to post pictures of the groundbreaking on our website blog as well as updated photos as the building goes up. Thanks to all who have supported our efforts! Stay tuned……..

Hearing from Rwinkwavu

Dec20

Everyone is excited as we pile into the minibus that will take us to Rwinkwavu for day one of our focus groups. All of the ORI interns are coming along today so that we can make some final adjustments to our questions and techniques after the first day.

Our first session is with seven umudugudu chiefs and the Executive Secretary for the area. As soon as we mention that we plan to have a preschool in the center, they suggest that this preschool should serve as a training center for all the surrounding preschools. Each umudugudu has a preschool of its own, but the teachers lack training and materials. Using the RCLLC’s preschool as a training center is a fantastic idea. By providing training and loaning materials to the area’s preschools we will be able to have an impact on far more children.

A grandmother explains the need for reading glasses.

A grandmother explains the need for reading glasses.

During our session with grandparents, we learn that most of the community members in this age group are not able to read and write. Of the seven grandparents at the session only one could read. The rest are all eager to learn, but they tell us that they and their peers will need reading glasses. This makes complete sense and I’m fairly confident it would never have occurred to us. Most of the residents of Rwinkwavu would not be able to purchase reading glasses for themselves. To enable the older generation to take advantage of all that the center will offer, we will need to keep reading glasses for loan.

We are all surprised when two separate groups of P6 students say their parents need training in family planning. They explain that many of their families are quite big and that their parents can’t afford to send all of their children to school. The students suggest that the center help educate their parents about family planning and the value of attending school.

The desire to learn English was voiced in every session. Focus group participants with some knowledge of English are eager to continue improving and those without any knowledge of English want to start with the basics. One of the grandmothers told a story of a time when a tourist asked her how to get somewhere. She understood the question, but was unable to communicate the necessary directions. This grandmother really wants to learn to give directions in English.

A lot of interesting ideas came out of the nineteen sessions. By the end of the last day, we had heard from a very interesting cross-section of the Rwinkwavu community. Everyone was incredibly cooperative and happy to help. The community members were all very appreciative that we had taken the time to ask for their input, and they can’t wait for the center to open.