At the young age of eight, Issa Haragirimana found himself alone on the streets of Bugesera, scavenging for food and sleeping under trees. That morning, his mother had left him in a small house where she worked, promising she would return, but she never did.

His father was in Burundi, a refugee unable to provide, while his older siblings had gone to Kigali, one to train as a security guard, the other to work as a house help.

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Haragirimana was born in 1997 in Kibenga Village, Mayange Sector, Bugesera District, as Rwanda was still healing from the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

"By the time I was eight, my mother couldn’t afford feed me, so she left me, hoping to get something to bring home. I didn’t know where she was, and there was no one to help me.”

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Left at a stranger’s house, Haragirimana said that he survived on trash, explaining that every day was a fight to survive. He would go to school in the morning and return home with nothing to eat.

"Sometimes I had to live on leftovers from trash cans to fill my stomach. I attended Kibenga Primary School, but could barely afford the Rwf 400 school fees, and was eventually sent away,” he noted.

By 2009, Haragirimana was on the street, where he survived on menial jobs like collecting water and other odd jobs which he would perform for a little money to buy food.

He explained that nights were spent under trees, on the roadside, and anywhere he could find shelter, noting that it was a ‘valley of darkness,’ a period when he had no hope for the future.

In 2011, while helping someone collect water from a large rainwater underground tank, he fell into it and almost lost his life. This near-death experience further exposed him to the precarious situation his life was in.

A year later, his fortunes began to shift. His mother resurfaced, and around the same time, Africa New Life Ministries started reaching out to vulnerable children in his area. They offered a chance to return to school.

At first, Haragirimana doubted he could ever catch up. He had not seen a classroom for over five years and had forgotten much of what he had learned. Still, with encouragement and support from the ministry, he agreed to try.

He enrolled in Kibenga Primary School in December 2012, starting afresh in Primary Four.

The transition was difficult, as he struggled with Kinyarwanda and English and lagged behind his classmates. With guidance from a staff member from the ministry who mentored him through lessons and assigned small tasks for pocket money, Haragirimana gradually caught up.

By 2014, he had been baptized at New Life Bible Church in Gahini, Kayonza District.

"It was me, God, and education. I knew I had to work hard to build a future,” he said.

Haragirimana noted that through diligence and support, he excelled, continuing to secondary school at New Life Christian Academy in Kayonza, taking leadership roles in the church and student committees, and completing high school in first division.

In May 2023, he joined Mount Kenya University to pursue a Bachelor of Business Information Communication Technology and has already completed his dissertation, awaiting graduation.

"There are children in a situation similar to mine, and I have decided to help them with whatever I can. Some go back to school but don’t have uniforms, shoes, or food. I support three of them, one in primary five, another in nursery, and even one in university in Kigali. If they need anything to eat or any school materials, I provide for them,” he said.

His journey is documented in a book he is preparing for publication. In chapter three, he describes what he calls the "valley of darkness”, a time when he would wake up not knowing if he would make it to the evening, unsure of where to go and confused about the future.

Haragirimana said that many children today face similar challenges he faced nearly 20 years ago, but with time and opportunity, that situation can change.

"Anyone who encounters children in need should act. You don’t need much to change their lives; even a small gesture can transform someone’s future. They didn’t choose to be in that situation,” he says.

Haragirimana, who is a sales executive with a cosmetics company, is working toward a long-term dream of one day building a school to educate vulnerable children at no cost.

Like Haragirimana, many children end up on the streets for various reasons.

Research by the University of Rwanda, in collaboration with SOS Children’s Villages and the National Rehabilitation Service (NRS), shows that economic hardship is the main cause, accounting for 74.4 percent of cases of delinquent behaviors among children under 15.

Family conflict follows at 69.2 percent, while rejection by relatives, peers, or the wider community affects 61.5 percent, and a lack of trust and support within the household contributes to 46.6 percent, and peer influence is reported in 46.2 percent of cases.

Children on the streets have the right to protection, education, and a safe environment.

This is the focus of World Children’s Day on November 20, celebrated under the theme "My day, my rights,” which emphasises giving children a voice and ensuring their daily lives are supported by their rights.