These days, it can be easy to lose track of what day it is…even what month it is! As summer is changing into fall here in the U.S., we wanted to share a short series of updates about what is happening with our families in Rwanda.
Normally during the summer months, the students in Rwanda are still in school, working through their second trimester. This year has been different as the schools closed in mid-March because of the coronavirus and the students have been at home since then. The government is still waiting to finalize plans for when the new school session will begin but we are hoping it will be soon!
Rwanda has not had huge numbers of people infected with COVID-19, but they are continuing to have new cases and so feel it is not time yet for students to return to close quarters of being in school. Many of the secondary students attend boarding school which adds another aspect to be cautious about. The country is taking many precautions in requiring everyone to be wearing masks, having curfews, and a more significant shutdown earlier in the year. This is challenging as much of the work of our families is in day-labor and cannot be done remotely.
Thankfully, our families have fared pretty well through all of this. Several were able to find work that could continue even during the shutdown. One family who lives near a private school has a job of watching a water pump that supplies water to the school. They live close to the pump which is a little further from the school and difficult for the school to provide security for. They hired this family for the task of making sure the pump is working well and also does not get stolen. This opportunity has greatly helped this family in having steady work. And, during this time when the schools are closed, the mama has also been hired by that same school to clean inside the school compound and in classrooms.
Family with new work opportunities!
Since there are recommendations for minimal interactions with other people in this time and it is more difficult for the kids to be running around and playing with many others in the village, we are hopeful that they have been able to spend some of their time focused on their studies during this long break from school. They have notebooks with much of what they learned in the first trimester and previous years, so spending time rereading these and remembering what they have learned will help them to be even more prepared for returning to school.
One of our primary students, Gasasira Jean Baptiste (“Titi”), was recently challenged by a neighbor to see if he knew the multiplication table for the number “3” with the prize of a treat if he could answer correctly. Titi was quickly able to recite all of the answers and surprised the neighbor…and his parents! They were amazed and gave credit to the extra coaching (tutoring) that their son has received while being in our program. We are grateful for the impact this extra time spent learning with our tutor, Grace, can have for the students.
Gasasira Jean Baptiste (“Titi”) remembering his multiplication tables!
We are also so grateful for the extra food support that we were able to offer our families during the past few months. We have had five times of distributing food supplies including rice, beans, kawunga (corn flour), and a little bit of cash for other needs. The families are so grateful for this additional supplement for feeding their families when work is uncertain or unavailable.
Rice, beans, and kawunga ready to be subdivided and distributed to families.
Mama Muhizi with her portion to share with her family.
Thanks for being on this adventure with us. Stay tuned for update #2 in the series!