Jean Claude TWAGIRIMANA (32) is one of the PROMISE beneficiaries in Rwanda. He lives in Gisunzu village in Kageyo Cell. He is married to Belina Mukandayisenga (28) with whom they have two children (both boys). The elder 6 years and the young 2 years. In appreciating how the PROMISE project has impacted his family he had the following o say:
“Jyewe n’umugore wanjye twatangiye gukora n’umushinga wa ADRA PROMISE muri 2017. Mu byukuri umushinga watangiye mfite ubumenyi buke ku bintu byinshi harimo ubuzima bw’umwana n’umubyeyi, imirere n’ubwuzuzanye n’uburinganire.
Nyuma y’ubukangurambaga bwakozwe n’abakozi b’umushinga hamwe n’abayobozi bacu, naje gutanga umurima ku butaka bwanjye kugira ngo hakorwe umurima-shuri mu rwego rwo kurwanya imirire mibi cyane cyane mu bana bari munsi y’imyaka 5 n’abagore batwite n’abonsa. Ibi nabitewe n’uko umwana wanjye yari yarigeze kujya mu mirire mibi.
Umushinga wa waje kumpa umurama w’imboga n’ikigega gifata amazi y’imvura avuye ku nzu yanjye kugira ngo nzashobore kuhira akarima k’igikoni. Nanone umushinga wampaye ingemwe z’ibiti by’imbuto bitandukanye nanone bigamije kurinda abana indwara.
Hamwe n’ibyo, umuryango wanjye nanone waje guhabwa ihene mu rwego rwo kubona ifumbire yo gushyira mu karima k’igikoni kanjye gakora nk’umurima-shuri w’abo duturanye kugira ngo umusaruro wanjye urusheho kwiyongera.
Kugeza ubu, imyimvire yanjye n’umugore wanjye kubijyanye n’imirire n’ubuzima bw’umwana n’umugore bwarazamutse. Twamenye akamaro k’imboga n’imbuto mu mu buzima bw’umwana ndetse no indyo yuzuye. Kubwanjye imyumvire yanjye ku buringanire n’ubwuzuzanye namenye akamaro ko kujya inama mu gufata ibyemezo no gufasha umugore wanjye imirimo.
Kubera uyu mushinga navuga ko nta munsi ifungoro ryacu riba ridafite imboga zifuye mu murima wacu ndetse tukaba dusagurira n’isoko. Amatunda baduhaye nayo yatangiye kwera kuburyo abana batangiye kuyarya ndetse tukaba twaragurishijeho. Uretse imboga n’imbuto turya mu rugo zabarirwa amafaranga agera ku 15,000Rwf/ukwezi, maze gukuramo amafaranga arenga 5,000Rwf. Aya mafaranga naje kuyongera nguramo amabati nasakaje igikoni kugira ngo amafungoro yacu ategurirwe ahantu hari isuku.
Ubu hashize amezi abiri ihene ADRA PROMISE yampaye ibyaye abana babiri harimo ishashi n’isekurume kandi zose zikaba zimeze neza. Ikiri imwe yambaga ifumbire ariko noneho aho ibyariye ifumbire imaze kwiyongera. Mu minsi iri imbere, ndaza kuba nshobora kweza imyaka myishi kubera ifumbire ndimo kubona ku ihene zanjye. Icyo maze kumenya n’uko iyo ukoresheje ifumbire, umusaruro wiyongera incuro 2. Nkaba relo shimira ADRA PROMISE kuri iyi hene bampaye ikaba igiye gutuma mbona umusaruro mwishi mu buhinzi ariko kandi nkazaba nshobora kugira izo ngurisha nkabona amafaranga yo gukora ibindi. Ubu ndateganya ko mu minsi itari iya kure tuzashobora gutunga inka iturutse kuri iyi hene kugira ngo twongere ifumbire yo gushyira mu mirima yacu. Turashimira cyane umushinga ADRA PROMISE n’abaterankunga bawo batugejeje ku byiza nk’ibi!”
Translation:
”My wife and I joined the ADRA PROMISE project in 2017. In fact the project found me with very limited knowledge and poor attitude about many things including the health of children and mothers, nutrition, gender equality and equity among other things.
After the sensitization that was conducted by the project staff alongside with our local leaders, I decided to offer part of my land to be used for a Farmer Field Learning school (FFLS) in a bid to fight malnutrition especially among children U5 years, pregnant and lactating mothers. This was due to the fact that my first born had ever suffered from malnutrition.
After offering land, the project did provide me with vegetable seeds with a water tank to harvest rain water off my house to help me be able to irrigate my garden. The project also did provide me with various fruit tree seedlings also aimed at help protect children from illnesses.
Along the above, the ADRA PROMISE project also did provide my family with a goat so as to enable get manure to use in my kitchen garden that serves as a FFLS for my community with the aim of increasing my harvests.
Today, our perception (self & wife) has changed for the better with regards to nutrition and the health of children and women. We have learnt the importance of vegetables and fruits in the life of children and the need to have a balanced diet. Personally, I have learnt the importance of consultation between the husband and wife and taking join decision as well as the need of helping my wife to accomplish the household chores.
Because of this project I can say that there is no single meal we can have without vegetables from our garden and even have more to sell. Some of the fruit trees have started to produce and the children have started to eat them and we have already to sell the extras. Not considering the vegetables consumed by the family with an estimated value of 15,000Rwf/month, I have so far earned more that 5,000Rwf from the sale of vegetables and fruits from my garden. With additional money to the income from the sale of vegetables and vegetables, I have managed to buy iron sheets that I have used to roof our kitchen so that our meals can be prepared in a more hygienic environment.
It is now 2 months after my goat has given birth to 2 kids (female & male) which are all doing well. While it was one, it gave me some quantity of manure but after delivery, I am even getting more manure. Very soon my harvest is going to increase tremendously due to the manure I am getting from my goats. What I have learnt is that with the use of manure, one’s harvest can double from the same piece of land. I am therefore grateful to ADRA PROMISE project for this goat which is going to help increase my agricultural yield to the extent that I will be able to have a balance to sale to get more money to attend to other needs. I believe that in the near future my family will be in position to buy a cow from this goat so as to increase the quantity of manure to use in our gardens. We are very grateful to ADRA PROMISE and her donor with whose support we have changed our status to this level.”
Prepared by: Dismas Ndagijimana, Nutritionist
Edited by: Martin Rutazigwa, M&E officer
