TEEN MOMS OF RWANDA
We're creating a basis for a brighter future
Ever heard of "The land of a thousand hills"? Well, then you have also heard of beautiful Rwanda. It is a country full of exotic wonder, home of the rare silverback gorilla, the immense Lake Kivu and a plethora of banana trees. But behind its riches, lurks a land with a tragic past. A past that even today is still causing victims.
War adversely affects an important but often forgotten group: women and children. The vast majority are more likely to die from indirect causes of military conflict, such as famine, poor hygiene, no access to healthcare and a lack of clean water. These shortcomings are due, on the one hand, to the widening of already existing inequalities and, on the other, to the collapse of social networks. This makes women and children extremely vulnerable to sexual violence and exploitation.
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The United Nations publishes very alarming statistics. In developing countries, 20 000 girls between the ages of 15 and 19 give birth every day. One third marry before they're 18 and another third give birth before they're 20. Usually, these girls come from a low socio-economic background, have low education and live in very remote areas. Imagine them getting pregnant on top of that. The harsh reality is that rape is not exceptional. In order to survive and to take care of their babies, these girls often have no choice but to leave school early. This makes their circumstances even more precarious and their life chances even more limited. A vicious circle is created.
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Despite the great progress that the gender equality bill has brought about, one sees a rising incidence of teenage mothers in remote areas of Rwanda. Girls who have to endure social stigma and exclusion. Not only from their neighbours or strangers on the street, but also from their families. They are on their own.
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It is for this reason that we, KARIBUNI V.Z.W., have decided to join forces with Rwandan organisations to tackle this worrying issue. Our primary objective is to teach these girls the necessary vocational skills so that they can (1) stand on their own two feet, (2) take care of themselves and their children and (3) regain their sense of dignity and self-confidence.
We believe that education is the key to long-term empowerment and socio-economical change.
BAHO KIBONDO
Karibuni V.Z.W. created Baho Kibondo from the ground up since 2018. Seeing so many young girls' lives changed forever because of their (involuntary) pregnancies made us want to continue our quest to help them build a better future for themselves and for their children. Our goal is to give them the opportunity to fullfil their full potential, earn a living, become role models and strong leaders in their communities.
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Since its creation, Baho Kibondo has taken 136 young girls and women under its wings. We provided them with a place to follow their courses for 'Sewing' and 'Basket Weaving' and a place to work after graduation.
Through the skills that have been taught and their own creativity and hard work, we're able to sell these handcrafted products on the international market, meaning Rwanda and Europe. We aim to teach them a profession so that they always have something to fall back on as well as build a career.
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Because Karibuni V.Z.W. is a non-profit organisation, all its earnings go back into the project so that we can further help these young women and girls as well as scale up and reach as many people in need as we can.
KABARONDO NGWINU MWANA
This was our first project centering around teen moms. By joining forces with KABARONDO NGWINO MWANA (KNM) we were able to help 38 families by offering the teen moms professional formations for hairdressing and sewing. And we're happy to say that the project is still ongoing.
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What did we achieve? Thanks to your help, KNM has been able to add a number of electric sewing machines to its range. In addition, we are pleased to announce that all 38 young mothers have successfully completed their training. Not only do they use their acquired knowledge and skills to practice their profession, but they can now also pass on their experience to the next generation.
BERWA KINUNU
For this project we joined forces with the Diocese of Kinunu. We offered a sewing course progam to give them skills to practice a professoin and to help them further their financial indepence.
With your help we were able to provide them with basic materials they needed, such as sewing machines, and fabrics.