First Lady Jeannette Kagame has called for greater recognition of nutrition as a cornerstone of healthcare, saying that recovery depends not only on medicine but also on ensuring patients are well nourished, cared for, and treated with dignity.

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Speaking at Solid Africa&039;s 15th anniversary celebration on Friday, July 24, she praised the nonprofit for transforming patient care by tackling hunger among vulnerable hospital patients and expanding access to medically tailored nutrition.

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"Medicine is not always enough. Lasting well-being comes through a nourished, loved, and respected human being," she said, adding that Solid Africa's work helped reshape the understanding of patient care by addressing hunger among patients undergoing treatment.

The First Lady highlighted the organization's evolution beyond simply providing meals. It now offers nutrition support tailored to patients' individual needs while extending its services to children through school feeding programmes.

She said the organization's impact demonstrates how ordinary citizens can create lasting change when united by compassion and a shared purpose.

"What began as a gesture to feed patients without means became tailored diets designed to meet each person's needs," she said.

"As we celebrate 15 years, keep the courage with which you served in the first week. Every new chapter is an opportunity to serve with fresh creativity and the same love that began this journey.

"You will always find us to be partners and friends in this mission. May Solid Africa continue to grow with the same energy, the same faith, and the same unwavering commitment to serving others."

‘It has always been about the people’

Founded in 2010 by Isabelle Kamariza, Solid Africa is a Rwandan nonprofit organization that provides medically tailored nutrition support to vulnerable hospital patients and promotes better nutrition within communities.

What began as an initiative to provide meals to patients who could not afford food during treatment has grown into one of the country's leading nutrition programmes. Today, the organization serves more than 1,500 patients and caregivers every day across five public hospitals, reaching approximately 130,000 beneficiaries annually, while also providing daily meals to more than 30,000 schoolchildren.

Through its nutrition programmes, Solid Africa also partners with more than 7,000 farmers, linking local agricultural production to improved health and food security. Since its inception, the organization has served more than five million patient-tailored meals to nearly 600,000 patients.

Kamariza said the organization's mission has always centered on restoring dignity to patients and families facing hardship.

"We talked about numbers, but for me, they never really mattered. It has always been about the people—the patients, volunteers, partners, and supporters whose dedication has sustained the organization over the past 15 years," she said.

Kamariza said Solid Africa was born at a time when she was uncertain about her own future but found purpose in serving vulnerable patients. She credited the organization's growth to the collective efforts of young volunteers and partners who believed that meaningful change did not require abundant resources, only a shared commitment to act.

"We believed that every person in a hospital bed could be one of us—our parents, our brothers, or our sisters. That belief is what kept us going."

Kamariza said the organization remains committed to reaching more patients and communities, noting that many people still lack access to the nutrition support they need during treatment.

"Every day there are patients who wish to be seen in one of the hospitals where Solid Africa operates. Our responsibility is to continue building together so that we can reach them," she said.

Esperance, a resident of Rusizi District, sought specialized treatment after her young son suffered severe burns in a fire. His head injuries were so extensive that doctors had to perform multiple skin grafts, removing healthy skin from other parts of his body to reconstruct the damaged area.

Unable to afford the cost of treatment, Esperance was referred to the University Teaching Hospital of Kigali (CHUK), before her son was later transferred to Kenya for further specialized care. Solid Africa stepped in to cover every aspect of the family's treatment, including hospital bills, medication, food, transportation, and other daily expenses. The organization continues to support the family by meeting their ongoing needs as the child recovers.

Solid Africa Chief Executive Officer Nassir Katuramu said the organization's journey began with a simple promise: no patient should have to battle hunger while fighting illness.

"What started with five patients receiving home-cooked meals prepared by volunteers has since grown into a national nutrition program serving hospitals, schools, and farming communities," he said.

Katuramu said the organization's growth has been driven by collective action rather than individual effort. He paid tribute to volunteers, founding members, development partners, and institutions that believed in the initiative long before it had the infrastructure or resources it enjoys today.

According to him, their support transformed a volunteer-led movement into a sustainable system capable of delivering nutrition services at scale.

Looking ahead, Katuramu said Solid Africa aims to help build a national public nutrition system integrated into government services rather than remaining a charity-driven initiative.

The organization plans to expand medically tailored meals in hospitals and schools while creating stable markets for thousands of smallholder farmers. He added that achieving this vision will require continued collaboration among the government, the private sector, development partners, and local communities.