Thoughts about Rwanda

Its exactly 2 weeks now since we left Rwanda and already it seems like a world away,although a piece of my heart will always remain in Cyanika. If you have been reading the blog regularly you will know about the terrible poverty that is everywhere in rural Rwanda and especially in the area where we lived. Progress is being made in Rwanda but it seems to be concentrated on Kigali, places like Cyanika remain forgotten and yet the villagers work so hard - they have to to survive!

You will also know about the plight of students who must pay for ther education - the equivalent of £40 a term and yet most families could never raise that amount of money and so many many children never go on to secondary education and for those that do, the students i was teaching, its touch and go whether their parents will find the money for next term and often they never finish their education. My lovely headmaster, calixte tries his best to keep the students at school for as long as possible but if it comes to exam time and they havent paid, they cant sit the exam. They are bright intelligent young people, desperate to get on in life and they know that it all depends on them finding enough money (a large amount for them, nothing for us)to get through.
At the end of this term, my school ran out of money and the students had to go home a week early because there was no money to feed them.

I just want to tell you about one or two of the students who became particularly dear to me:

JOHN DAMASCENE 21 is an orphan who spent his early years in a refugee camp in the Congo. He has been in orphanages and boarding schools all over Rwanda. He wants to become a musician.

JOHN MARIE VIANNEY17 - his mother left him and his 2 younger siblings when they were babies, now his father is in prison (denounced for genocide crimes)and he is bringing up his younger sister; He receives just enough money from the red cross to pay his fees but not enough to buy school materials. Unless he finds a sponsor he wont be able to go to university and he is very intelligent and a talented musician.

VALENS M 24 supporting himself and younger sister, very proud that he has his provisional driving licence and wants to become a moto driver but needs £45 to join the moto drivers' union before he can do anything

VALENS N 23, another brilliant student who wants to become a journalist.

JOHN BOSCO 16 a lovely boy and one of the youngest in year 10 but very bright, has so many plans but no money

and then of course there are the absolutely destitute families living near us and their starving children!

I have worked out that if i could raise £5,000 a year I could make a significant difference to these peoples lives. I am looking into starting a charity but you need a minimum of £5,000 to do that.

If any schools who read this blog would like to sponsor a student - one of the above or a younger child, or if any individual would like to make a donation, I can assure you that the money will go immediately to where it should. Callixte is my contact in Cyanika and he is one the nicest and most honest people I have ever met.