It was a sunny Friday afternoon when we arrived at Nyamirambo Women’s Center, a colorful shopping center that displayed all kinds of Rwandan souvenirs. On display were Kitenge fabrics, and craft products ranging from children’s clothes, women’s accessories, to home handmade decor created by the women of Umutima Cooperative. ALSO READ: Meet the Nyamirambo women who have tailored their lives to prosperity It was a pretty busy zone; customers move around the shop, admiring the beauty of the products and purchasing some of their favourites. We could guess that some of the buyers, or tourists, were from Europe, US, or Germany. One of them, Cohen Anshel from Germany, loved the designs and bought items such as wallets, table wipes, and oven gloves as gifts for his family and friends back home. ALSO READ: Babyl, Bill Gates Foundation celebrate brains behind Nyamirambo Women's Center Being his first time at the center, Anshel was intrigued by how the center supports women, and helps fight gender-based violence. He looked forward to telling his friends and family about the centers’ works. “Seeing women make these products in your presence is incredible,” he said. Nyamirambo Women’s Center has attracted people within and outside Rwanda; including prominent names such as Whitney Alford, Kendrick Lamar’s partner, who bought some items from there. Other celebrities and high-profile visitors at the center include diplomats such as Amb. Einat Weiss, the Israeli envoy in Rwanda, her predecessor, Amb. Ron Adam, Amb. Antoine Anfré, France’s envoy in Rwanda, Omar Daair, the British High Commissioner to Rwanda, and Johanna Teague, the Swedish Ambassador to Rwanda. Former Miss France Sonia Rolland, the Chief Executive Officer of Rwanda Governance Board (RGB), Usta Kaitesi, former president of Estonia Kersti Kaljulaid, and the founder of the Giants of Africa Masai Ujiri, and others, also went shopping at the center. According to Marie Aimee Umugeni, the center’s manager, the local non-profit organosation started in 2007 with a group of 18 women but it has grown and now provides support to women. It was launched by single mothers who teamed up with the intention of supporting each other to learn income-generating skills so that they could cater for their children’s school fees and healthcare. After getting their working premises, the women started offering other women in the area services such as free reading and writing classes, as well as lessons in making handicrafts, hairdressing, and tailoring. Umugeni said: “We train them in sewing, and hair braiding, thus creating job opportunities for them. So far, the center has trained more than 6,000 women and has created more than 200 jobs for the last 15 years.” She noted that the center attracts many people who buy the products – this empowers women to keep sewing. At the end of the month they are paid, thus helping the center to become sustainable. Nyamirambo Women’s Center has contributed to some of the big events hosted by Rwanda, she noted, singling out July’s Women Deliver conference, one of the world’s the largest meetings on gender equality, which offered an opportunity to the women to make 8,000 conference bags. She added: “The guests from such conferences support us a lot. There are times when they buy all the products in our shop and the women have to make even more. “With the Move Afrika event, the center made all the lampshades that were used at BK Arena during Kendrick Lamar’s show. This has put us on a map as everyone who came for the Global Citizen event knows us since most guests purchased souvenirs from us.” She also noted that Rwanda Convention Bureau and other event managers regularly reach out to the women’s center with deals to make different products for conferences and events – which has boosted local businesses. Umugeni said the center wants to train more women to close the gender gap in workplaces where some jobs such as tourist guides and drivers are still mainly done by men. It is for this reason that the center anticipates constructing a training center where women will learn diverse skills in fashion, tourism guides, woodwork, and others. Myriam Umutesi, a mother of one, is among the women who benefited from the center. She started by learning how to use a computer, and tailoring, before she was, later, employed. With her salary, she can meet her needs such as paying rent and educating her daughter. Before getting employed at the center, Umutesi was working as a waitress at a local hotel, but could not afford to cater for her basic needs.
