FOR ALMOST 20 years, Dan Ndayambaje, lived a deplorable life. The survivor of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi lived in a hut that leaked whenever it rained and whose roof threatened to fly off whenever wind blew.

"Life was challenging. Even the small hut I was living in with my family was a donation from a good Samaritan,” the father of three says.

"I had lost hope and thought I would die in misery. I didn’t see any ray of hope ,” he adds.

For the past two decades, Ndayambaje’s dream has been to own a house and whenever he prayed, he implored God to help him realise his dream.

And that dream came to pass  on Wednesday as the Integrated Polytechnic Regional Centre (IPRC)-South handed him a Rwf40 million modern house built as part of its programme to support the most vulnerable Genocide survivors.

The fully furnished house is located at Karubanda, an upscale neighbourhood outside Huye town.

At the ceremony, the 34-year-old father was all smiles and described the donation as a turning point.

"Now that I have a place to call home, I can now think of moving forward and improving my living conditions,” he said, adding that living in a poor environment could not allow him to think well.

"I hope this donation opens doors to new opportunities that will allow me to think and engage in activities to transform my family’s livelihood,” he added.

His wife Grace Twagiramariya, 26, could also not hide the excitement.

"I am now safe. I can sleep soundly,”she said. 

Impacting communities

Ndayambaje’s family is one of the six survivor households which received a house donation from technical and vocational schools in the Southern Province.

The units, which were constructed in the districts of Ruhango, Nyanza and Huye, are part of a commitment from the Ministry of Education and the Workforce Development Authority (WDA) to support the most vulnerable Genocide survivors. WDA is the agency that regulates Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and has set up several IPRCs as model training centres.

As part of the initiative, students undergoing training at several technical and vocational schools form the workforce during construction as they put their skills into practice. Their instructors supervise the works while their respective institutions provide necessary equipments.

Jerome Gasana, WDA director general, said the initiative is part of their programme to reach out to the community and help inspire positive change.

He said as part of the 20th anniversary of the 1994 Genocide, they are set to build at least 20 housing units for survivors across the country.

Speaking at the handover ceremony, the Minister of State for Primary and Secondary Education, Olivier Rwamukwaya, commended the initiative and urged other schools to emulate it

He said the initiative proves that "students are not learning for the sake of it but rather to impact the community.”

He said his ministry will continue to champion and support such programmes which are helping to  uplift the welfare of citizens.