co-op funds

Recently a friend of mine from First Question North Co-operative contacted me to say they would like to make a 100GBP donation to a co-operative in Rwanda.

Co-operatives are big in Rwanda and there are many of different shapes and sizes.  I wanted to find one that was small and needed the funds badly in order to make a good start.  I found one!

5 ladies in Nyarubande who currently work together to make a sorgum drink for local people.  It is a non alcoholic drink that they make and then sell to local people to make money.  None of these ladies own anything!  They are all ready and willing to try to work hard to use this money for the benefit of all the ladies involved.  They hope to be able to use the funds to grow their own sorgum by renting some land instead of having to pay someone else for the sorgum,  as they do now.

Locals enjoy the drink

One of the ladies who makes the drink

The finished product

Ladies of the co-operative in the yard behind the place where they sell the drink

 

I look forward to seeing how entrepreneurial these ladies can be when provided with a little support!  I will keep you posted.

Solar project Bingley Rotary Club

In June last year Bingley Rotary Club raised 700 GBP to help Rwanda following a talk I gave at their regular weekly meeting.  Following an application to the International fund this was doubled and they eventually donated 2,000GBP which was fantastic.

I was delighted to be able to use these funds to help a school in Rwanda called Gitinda.  It is a very remote school near the base of Muhabura volcano.  The head teacher is called Providence.  The school had no electricity and not much chance of getting any due to the remote nature of its location.  Here are some images of the school.

Classroom showing new lights!

The control centre

Another classroom with lights!

New primary library under construction

Solar panels installed

Wall demolished and library now created

Primary library books including reading books Yippeee!



I visited the school today and they are very very happy with the panels and the books.  They have now had time to move all the primary books to the new shelves in the library that they are also very proud of.  (The books were previously stored in the secondary school and were inaccessible to the primary teachers)  Children are now borrowing books to take home and read.  The head teacher is now able to run a laptop and printer from the energy provided by the solar panels which helps her to run the school more effectively and also they can charge their mobile phones - essential!  :-)

It is amazing how such a relatively small amount by UK standards can make such a huge difference over here.

So a very very huge thank you to the Rotary Club of Bingley.  Keep up the good work!  It is very very much appreciated.

House

Well here it is!

 

Since buying the house I have decorated every room, had water tanks put in to collect the rain water, repaired the drive, painted the walls outside, planted things in the garden, built wardrobes in the main bedroom and generally made improvements to the place.

 

 

 

Repairing the drive

Tanks being delivered!

Tanks nearly installed

Frame being painted and Marie!

New plant holders and chairs for the front porch

So that's been one project!

Christmas 2013 - Bujumbura Burundi

What's going on?

 

First of all sorry its been so long since I wrote a blog.  Life and work has kind of taken over.  I can't believe it is March 2013 since I wrote.  Since then much water has flowed under the bridge. 

I bought a house in Musanze,  thinking I would be here for at least another 18 months to 2 years with VSO.  I met Isaac.   I have been renovating the house.  I left VSO after 22 months in June 2013 because I was offered a job working for the British Council in Kigali on an Innovation for Education Project called Language Supportive Textbooks and Pedagogy.  I am the project manager for this project.  So you can see I have been somewhat pre-occupied!  I have also tried to keep up with my activities supporting schools and people in Musanze in general.  More on that later.......

 

First Christmas as it seems like a long time ago now!

 

As I had just go the job at BC and had not worked up enough leave (or enough money) to venture home at Christmas I decided it would be nice to visit Bujumbura in Burundi.  I had not been there before and many people said it was nice.  Particularly by Lake Tanganyika.  So I decided to book into Pinnacle 19 Beach resort for Christmas.  This place was recommended by a friend of mine who had stayed there.

 

We set off by hire car and drove the whole way.  It took around 12 hours in all but that included a 3 hour wait at the border to get the car through - buy insurance - etc and getting lost in Bujumbura when we arrived.... so it could probably be done in around 10 usually.

 

 

 

We stopped briefly en route at the Museum in Butare (Huye) the former capital of Rwanda for a short rest.  We finally arrived weary but glad to be there.

The place we stayed was lovely. Right on the lake.  Here are the views from the shore.

 

 

 

View towards Bujumbura

 

View towards DRC

Boys fishing by hand in the lake
 

 

Dinner on the first evening.

Christmas Eve all dressed up and going out!

Went out for a lovely meal on Christmas Eve and Atrium A

Xmas day - New top - Thanks Mum x
 

Sights when travelling home



So that was Christmas!  Not exactly ice and turkey roast!  It was lovely and relaxing though.  Following this I spent another relaxing week in Musanze not having to get up for work was wonderful.

St Patrick's Day Party

Travelled to Kigali on Saturday for the annual Irish revelry.  Here are just a couple of snaps of some of the action!

The dancing was good, the company good and hopefully they raised a lot of money for charity.

Byumba Trip Feb 2013

This was eventful weekend 2^nd and 3^rd of Feb to celebrate Lesley's birthday.  Unfortunately travelling this weekend was a bit difficult as all S1 and S4 pupils were returning to school so the buses were cram packed with students. 

Arrived at 1.30 after a two hour wait at Nyabugogo in Kigali.  Went for a lovely walk.   Byumba is a hidden treasure.  Rolling lush green pastures with lovely banana trees everywhere and wonderful views.  The day was bright and sunny and clear.  Wonderful.  Forgot to take my camera so will now have to go again to snap the views.  Returned for a meal at 4pm to the hotel which was also very nice (Ubwuzu) The manager is called Blondine and it was a lovely stay.  In the afternoon they organised a band of drummers to come.  They were very good.  Spent the evening there then went to Lesley and Steves in the evening for a party for Lesleys birthday. 

Next day we set off in a bus to the marshes and Lake Burera to do some bird watching.  It was a very hairy trip with the bus having to go across some very dodgy looking bridges made of logs (about 10 in all!)  Each time the whole bus held its breath in case the bridge collapsed!  We finally made it.

The bus ride was about 1 hour then we arrived at the boats with an audience as usual.

Had to walk some of the way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Set off bird watching and saw these!

 

Crested Cranes

Bishop Bird

Kingfisher

Not sure what this is!  Any ideas?

Pelican

Yellow billed ducks

 

We also saw spoonbills and herons but could not get close enough for a picture.

 

This is a picture of the wonderful scenery we saw all weekend.  All in all a wonderful weekend.  Thanks Lesley and Steve!

Cow for Kabuga and toilets!

My good friend Jax who visited Rwanda last year has been raising funds in her school to enable Kabuga to build some new toilets.  When she visited the school the number of toilets was inadequate and the existing loos were full!  What can I say.  Jax provided some money to have the loos emptied.


Waste having been emptied from the 'old' toilets

The 'old' toilets were then cleaned and ready for use.




















She also raised money to pay for them to dig a hole to enable the school to build a new block of toilets.  Digging the hole is not as simple as it sounds due to the fact that the school is based on volcanic rock and there are no tools available for digging it so it has to be broken up by hand - a very long job.

The hole at the beginning

 

The hole gets deeper.

The foundations are prepared.

 

The funds raised also went to buy a cow so that the pupils in school can have milk.  This was a challenge for me knowing nothing about cows!! but I went with the head teacher to one of the local farmers and purchased the cow and then we had to take it to a place where it would stay until the shelter was built for it nearer the school.  The cow is pregnant so in September should have a calf and that calf will be passed onto someone in the local community who is very poor in order to help them.  This is a tradition in Rwanda.

 

The cow who has been christened Arboyne

 

The cow's temporary home