Social Issue

Although the incidence of extreme poverty in Rwanda has been rapidly reducing over the past decade, the COVID-19 crisis risks reversing decades of progress in the fight against poverty. The Rwandan government’s Education for All initiative that provides free and compulsory education has been a success in increasing school attendance, yet many children still do not attend school. The main reasons for this are related to the lack of resources of their families, who cannot cover the cost of school lunches, nor pay for school supplies.

The problem is exacerbated in the final years of secondary school when tuition is no longer compulsory and free, and the financial burden for these families increases as their children move forward with their studies.

Our Response

We have collaborated with the NGO Trust and Care since 2007 to improve the situation in the region through education.

The main objectives of the project are:

• To provide school supplies to 50 elementary school students, and to pay for school fees and supplies to 6151 secondary students.
• To provide training to social workers in the region, covering nutrition (the importance of a balanced diet to combat malnutrition and how to use the limited resources available to the maximum effect) and health (prevention of AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, etc).
• To get all these beneficiaries registered with the equivalent of social security (“mutuelle de santé”) with which they can receive any necessary health service for free in any health centre, including vaccinations.
• To provide the children with tutors who will offer constant monitoring as well as acting as mentors and advisers.

In October 2021, the Government of Rwanda launched its National School Feeding Programme which ensures that school meals are provided to all children attending school. This program is subsidised by the government but most parents still need to pay fees for school lunches, which is often a hefty financial burden for some families. Given this, Netri since 2021 has also financed the school lunch program of secondary students attending day school. In this way, we believe, we can contribute to more children benefiting from school meals and completing school.

Expected Social Impact

This donation will sponsor 1,200 children to continue their education for one academic year. For 16 years, Netri foundation, through Trust and Care Rwanda has been sponsoring students whose parents or guardians are unable to meet their education needs due to limited resources. Many of these children have been able to go on to tertiary education and secure a bright future, which is testament to the power of education, enabling socio-economic mobility and a means to break the cycle of poverty.