AN AMBASSADOR FOR CHANGE

HIV/AIDS prevention is all about behavioral change and this is what Simon Havugimana stands for. Since going through a HIV/AIDS prevention workshop with World Relief in 2006, Simon now 30, has become a self made advocate for abstinence among the youth, encouraging them to say no to sex before marriage.
Orphaned at the age of two, Simon spent most of his childhood days on the battle field as a child soldier and later on the streets scratching for a living. He came into contact with World Relief in 2004 at one of the youth rehabilitation center in Kigali, Rwanda’s Capital. At the center he trained as a tailor but he also received HIV/AIDS education.
Simon pictured right, believes that the training he received is too good to keep to himself and is now a popular sight in churches and communities where he trains other youth to stay safe.

“I am not just a trainer; I am an example to many”
After he got the training on HIV/AIDS, Simon committed to abstain from sex until 2007 when he got married to his wife. As a married man he continues to promote abstinence among youth and faithfulness among married couples and he says it is possible.

Youth pose for a picture after a community event during which they compete in various games and also share HIV/AIDS information

HOPE IS NEVER LOST

Seven years ago Annet Ndayisenga, now 28 years old lost her father. As a result of her father’s death she dropped out of school for lack of school fees. During that time she attended a training on HIV/AIDS prevention which was conducted at her church by World Relief in Nyamata District.
She and group of friends from her church formed an association of 20 people who took on the task of training other youth within her church and other churches in her community teaching them about HIV/AIDS prevention using the Choose life manual.
Right: Annet & her husband Martin attending a couples training workshop in Nyamata
Through her active role in HIV/AIDS perevention she was selected by World Relief for a scholarship to continue her education. In 2006 she completed school and got married to her childhood friend Martin Ngendahayo.
Annet has not got employment yet but she is hopeful that the future is bright. “I have hope that God will provide me with a job. He has done great things in my life before”.

IN SERVICE TO THE POOR

Adeline Nikuze 28 is a final year student at the National University of Rwanda where she majors as a social sciences student. Her level of education has however not kept her from serving the poor in her community.
Orphaned during the genocide of 1994, Adeline(pictured) lost a large part of family including her, mother, father and siblings. Instead of bitterness, her past has taught her grace and compassion leading her to serve the poorest of the poor. Undeterred by her social status in comparison to those she seeks to serve this young woman is totally committed to working towards improving the lives of the vulnerable mostly those who are infected with HIV/AIDS.
“I have always desired to serve the poor. I may be well educated but my heart is with these people”, referring to over twenty people living with HIV/AIDS who were gathered at a youth rehabilitation Center in Huye District, Rwanda’s Southern Province where they were learning how to prepare nutritious meals
Working with the poor Adeline’s greatest satisfaction is to see the lives of the poor being transformed. “I love to help people overcome their challenges”.
The initiative was started through partnership between World Relief and the Catholic Relief Services to promote better nutrition among underweight and malnourished people living with HIV/AIDS.

A nutrition class in session

A STORY OF HEALING

Five years ago Claire a mother of 4 thought she could never smile again. When she lost her husband and a large part of her family during the genocide and all she wished for was death. However her story has changed from that of bitterness towards God and resentment towards those she accuses of killing her loved ones. Today her story is that of hope.

Pictured: Claire (right) and a friend share a moment

Through World Relief’s Essential Oils Project Ikirezi, Claire’s passion for life has been restored. For most the widows and orphans-partners with Ikirezi, it is more than just a project, it is a community- a circle of friends. Here they meet to pray together and work hard on the geranium fields to provide for their families.

Although the effects of pain and suffering have left a lasting mark on her, Claire finds solace and comfort in the friendship she shares with 100 other members of geranium growers in Gasabo district of Kigali City.

“Before I joined Ikirezi, I was sad and lonely. Although I still struggle every now and then, I am hopeful that as long as the Lord lives things can only get better”, Claire says.

Far from the isolated woman she was a few years ago, it is clear to see that Claire is a fun loving woman, full of life and outgoing.

Coming from a background of loss many of the women say they appreciate the sense of community and togetherness that they enjoy working alongside each other. They acknowledge the ministry of the Manager of Ikirezi Nicholas Hitimana, who they refer to as a man who was sent by God to show them a better way.

Ikirezi, Essential Oils Project promotes the welfare of the most vulnerable especially widows and orphans through partnership with them in the growing, processing and exporting of geranium products.

PROMOTING FAITHFULNESS AMONG COUPLES

In addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis World Relief is helping couples in Rwanda to understand God’s purpose in creating the marriage institution and the value of the marriage covenant.

World Relief believes that faithfulness in marriage is key in curbing the HIV/AIDS pandemic which has destroyed many families usually claiming the lives of the parents and leaving many orphans behind. In Rwanda 270,000 children have lost their parents to HIV/AIDS.

WR started a drive to train church leaders who in turn train couples from their churches and the communities on the subject of HIV/AIDS, sensitizing couples to stay faithful to one another to prevent HIV infection.
Pastor Theophil Nsengiyumva and his wife Aimable Karambe are the leaders of Episcopal Church in Rwamagana District in the Eastern Province. They are among the 20 first couples who were trained early this year and soon after they started to train 10 other couples equipping them to reach out to more couples in their communities with the message of faithfulness.

Pictured: Pastor Theophil and his wife Aimable

Aimable said that this kind of training is very crucial in Rwamagana district. “We have many women whose husbands have been in prison for a long time and sometimes they can no longer afford food to take to their husbands and they become vulnerable to men who promise to support them financially in exchange for sexual favors” she said.
Pastor Theophil indicated it is important that church leaders undergo training on faithfulness because many of them spend most of their time and resources outside their homes trying to help other people and in the process they end up neglecting their families.

Pictured:Couples take notes during a faithfulness training at a local church

LIVING A LIFE OF SACRIFICE

For half of his 60 year life, Venerand Byaringoma has been a pastor. Married with 7 children, Venerand is still focused on his calling, preaching the word of God and taking care of the vulnerable in his community.
Recently Venerand pictured, was faced with a challenge beyond his means to solve. It was about Emmanuel Nsengiyumva a young man who lost his parents two years ago to HIV/AIDS. As a result he could no longer be in school for luck of school fees. Given the pastor’s financial record, he could not do much. He however took on the issue and talked it over with the wife who he said was very supportive.
After discussions with his wife Venerand presented the orphan’s case to a team of pastors seeking their counsel as well. At the end of their meeting the Pastors decided to pull together their personal resources to support Emmanuel who had been out of school since the death of his parents.
Although World Relief is actively involved in supporting the education of orphans and vulnerable children in Kirehe district, WR can only take on a limited number. By the time Emmanuel’s case was brought to light, the lists were already full. The Pastors looked at the lists and identified a student who was in his final year. The Pastors took this student off the list and put Emmanuel in his place because he had 3 years to go before completing school.
They put their personal resources together and paid school fees for the student whose place was taken up by Emmanuel. Today Emmanuel is happy to be back in school.

PROMOTING HEALTHY NUTRITION IN POOR COMMUNITIES

Vestine Bigirimana is a single mother struggling to raise 4 children. 12 years ago her husband left for the Congo and never returned. Worse still, Vestine later discovered she had HIV the virus that causes AIDS. The effect of the disease coupled with poverty related issues caused her to lose so much weight that by the time WR came into her community she was severely malnourished weighing in at 35kg.

Members of the care group share lunch after trainning
In an effort to address the growing cases of malnutrition in poor communities in Rwanda, World Relief formed a partnership with the Catholic Relief Services to provide short term food aid and nutrition & Hygiene training to people living with HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable groups.

To those affected this was a godsend kind of intervention. “My life has improved greatly. I was so thin and yet I needed to be strong to take care of my children” vestine said.
The project started at the close of 2007, using the Positive Deviance/Hearth approach to quickly rehabilitate malnourished/underweight beneficiaries; enabling families to sustain rehabilitation at home; preventing diseases and future malnutrition by adopting good practices of nutrition and Hygiene.
In order to make the food aid effort sustainable without creating over dependency on hand outs, WR encouraged the project beneficiaries to form care groups where members meet on a weekly basis to learn how they can improve their lives using the resources available to them.

Pictured: a volunteer takes record of Vestine’s weight for July 2008
Trained community volunteers were assigned to the different care groups to facilitate the nutrition classes. Vestine belongs to a group of 12 members who meet every Thursday in Huye district of Rwanda’s Southern Province. In preparation for their training all members are required to bring uncooked food which is then prepared by the group as they all learn to make a balanced meal. This is one of 29 groups in the same district.

On the day I visited the group, they had prepared plantain mixed with peanut paste, onions, tomatoes and coconut oil. They also had beans and eggplants. By rural standards this was a well prepared and balanced meal.

The lessons are paying off. Over a period of 6 month members have been weighing in at the end of every month to see how well they are doing. Since joining the group Vestine has gone from 35kg to 49kg.

TRANSFORMING THE LIVES OF THE YOUTH

Pastor Samuel Batumanyeho is the President of one of the Interfaith Committees in Rwanda’s Eastern Province. Added to Presidency, Samuel is passionate about of young people and he works tirelessly to help them to prevent getting HIV the virus that causes AIDS.
Rwanda’s Eastern Province shares a common border with Tanzania. As such HIV/AIDS is prevalent here given that there is much traffic of goods and people. The youth here are mostly uneducated and unemployed making them easy targets for promiscuity and prostitution.
Last year Pastor Samuel (Pictured) visited a small village, 25 Km away from his home reaching out to a group of youth there. Although the distance is Iong and he has no means of transport, he is not deterred from doing what he believes is God’s assignment on his life.

Since his first visit in 2007, Samuel has been able to form a group of 26 youth who he trained on the Choose Life manual. “When I first visited most of the youth had been sexually active. Although they professed to be Christians, many of them lived sexually impure lives. Through interacting with them and sharing the word of God, many have changed” he added.
According to Pastor Samuel these young people engage in prostitution because of poverty. “They get involved with multiple sexual partners because they have to support their families”.
At the start of 2007, Pastor Samuel came up with a better option to the prevailing lifestyle of the youth he was reaching. He taught them how to make soap and sell it to earn money. Six months later the youth have committed to abstinence and are leading more productive lives.
Pastor Samuel is pleased to report that the trained youth are a living example to the other youth and are sharing their new found knowledge to help their peers.
Pastor Samuel 44 has been leading his church for 14 years. He is married with 6 children.

WHEN COUPLES DISCOVER THAT THEY HAVE HIV

When AIDS comes into a family it doesn’t only jeopardize the health of those involved but it also devastates the emotional health of the couple and trust is lost. Each partner blames the other for being unfaithful and hence bringing the virus home.

Jean de Dieu Nyirandekwe and his wife discovered that they were infected with the HIV virus in 2003. It was a very painful experienced which led to many conflicts and misunderstandings in their family and threatened to destroy their marriage.

“When couples discover that they are infected it is a difficult time for them. They need help to come to terms with the fact that they are carrying a virus that could kill them any time and of course there is the blame game” he says.

With the help of trainings on faithfulness offered by his church Jean de Dieu was able to hold his family together through the dark season of their life.

As a result of his experience, he started an association of people living with HIV/AIDS with the help of his church. One of the main objectives of the association is to help infected couples to be able to address their problems together.

Jean de Dieu encourages infected people to speak out about their status adding that when people speak out they demystify the mystery around AIDS and this helps people to better support one another.

World Relief is actively involved in promoting faithfulness among couples to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS. Partnering with local churches WR has sensitized over 41,500 couples on faithfulness over the last 2 years.

TRANSFORMING COMMUNITIES THROUGH AGRICULTURE

Perus Nzabonankira pictured is a 41 year old mother of eight children. This is a large family even by African standards. To raise these children and give them an education is next to impossible given the very low levels of income in rural Rwanda. When IKIREZI Natural Products, a community interest company that promotes the growth and production of essential Oils, was birthed in Rwanda, it had women like Perus in mind.
Perus is one of 300 members of the Geranium Growers Association of Gahara a sector in Rwanda’s Eastern Province.
She joined IKIREZI in 2007, when the company was first introduced to this area. Perus had been struggling to provide food, education, medical care and other basic necessities, through subsistence farming.
IKIREZI managed to convince many farmers like Perus to engage more in the growing of geraniums because it is a better money earner than the sorghum, beans, sweet potatoes and maize which were commonly grown then.
“It was a big step of faith to reduce the amount of time we were putting in growing our food crops. We had never seen or heard about geraniums but I decided to give it a try” Perus said.
Over one year has gone by and Perus is still working the geranium fields and making a living for her family. Alongside her day to day activities-growing food crops for her family, Perus spends two days each week working in the geranium fields where she earn FRW 30,000 per month which is equal to USD 56. “With the money I earn I am able to take my children to school and buy scholastic materials. This was not possible before I joined IKIREZI” Perus added.
Each farmer is assigned to work on 20 raised beds which are about 0.04 hectares. At the end of each month a farmer earns FRW 30,000= USD 56 for their work on the fields and at harvest time each one of the farmers sells the geranium leaves to IKIREZI. One kilogram of the geranium leaves costs FRW 30. On average a farmer harvests 450 kilograms every 4 months. There are 3 harvest seasons in a year.
IKIREZI a World Relief sub grantee was established in 2003. To date it has 3 sites Gasabo District in Kigali City, Kiyombe sector in the Northern Province and Gahara sector in the Eastern Province serving 800 farmers mostly widows and orphans.