In gesprek met Judith en Victory

Storytelling van 18 februari 2019 door Henri Plas en Nicolien Overbeek


Mrs. Vitoire NyarahategekimanaMrs. Judith Mkomoganga

We spraken met deze 2 vrouwen over hoe zij terug kijken op de tijd met de groep afgelopen zomer.

Judith is betrokken bij de school als lid van het ECDC management comité. Hier zitten vertegenwoordigers van ouders, leraren, maar ook de CLA waar zij bij zit. CLA staat voor Cluster Level Association, dit is een groep afgevaardigden van 15 SHG's (Self Help Groups) die overstijgende belangen (zoals bijvoorbeeld onderwijs) behartigd. En Victoire of Victory is als community facilitator de brug tussen AEE en de SHG's, doordat zij de gemeenschap mobiliseert en enthousiasmeert om samen te werken als groep en omdat je op die manier meer samen kunt bereiken.

Beiden zijn enthousiast over de komst van de groep en het nieuwe gebouw: Judith: "Oh, yes the coming of the team brought a lot of change. Before we had no such a place to bring our children. There was only a very small room that we were renting. As parents (she has a daughter in the ECDC) we are now very happy. It is a good and safe surrounding now." Victory vult aan: “we learned from the visitors that they had to work hard to raise this amount, through doing (voluntary)work. So it is not only out of richness that they can do this. They really have to work hard! This example showed us that we can also help each other in this way.
And they not only came to visit and watch, but they also came to work with us. We could not believe that they could carry bricks and to do the hard work. They really showed love and enthusiasm. They were interested in us and our culture. It really touched our heart”
Ze vertelt verder: “when we were working in the kitchen they came to say thank you to us. They showed a lot of love, so you can see that they are one people: no one was left behind in the community and amongst each other. It didn’t matter for them if you are poor or not.”

Judith vertelt ons dat ook na het project in de gemeenschap verandering heeft gebracht. “there are many more people interested in becoming a member of a SHG, because they see what through the SHG and working together can be realized. Especially men are interested and they want to establish a SHG also.” Op dit moment zijn er 11 SHG’s in Nyarushishi, alleen zijn dit SHG's gestart door vrouwen en jongeren, en nog niet door mannen.

Ze hebben ook plannen voor verbeteringen van de ECDC: “we would like to add bread and milk to the porridge that is provided for the children. Another thing we would love to do is make a fence around the terrain and realise a place for the youngest children to go and sleep.”