The meeting took place this Friday, December 6, 2024 at the Gikondo Community Centre in Kigali.
During her visit to Rwanda, the United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees, Kelly T. Clements, did not forget to meet with organizations founded and run by refugees. Among them was the « Forum pour la mémoire Vigilante », FMV.
The UN Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees was accompanied by the Director of the UNHCR Regional Office and the UNHCR Representative in Rwanda.
FMV, represented by its legal representative and its Executive Director, had the honor of showcasing its achievements and prospects in various fields of intervention.
First and foremost was the project to support the education of young refugees.
“We have a commitment to educational support, having accompanied 30 refugee children every year since 2019 thanks to contributions from the Burundian Community of Texas (BCT) and Flaming Chalice International (FCI). We also have the need to expand the number of beneficiaries, which requires the support of new technical and financial partners,” said Reverien Gahimbare, FMV Executive Director at the meeting.
Peace education, a key area in a troubled region.
“Our efforts in peace education, with a particular emphasis on the importance of couples training and peace education programs in border areas affected by sporadic or continuous conflicts. Advocacy with potential partners in this sector, will effectively enable the FMV to implement these initiatives which aim to strengthen regional stability and will need to be expanded to have more impact,” they said.
In the field of health, the actions presented included awareness-raising workshops, the distribution of sanitary towels to refugee women in Muhanga and Kamonyi during the COVID-19 pandemic, and so on.
The team also presented the importance of the mental health and maternity program, which is currently seeking funding.
In the field of languages and culture,
the impact of cultural activities, particularly theatrical performances, on the lives of refugees was highlighted. These initiatives promote social integration and personal enrichment for the communities concerned. The duo also highlighted other activities planned to strengthen this sector.
The energy and environment sector was not left out.
« One of the highlights of our presentation was the “TEKA NEZA STOVE”, a clean cooking model with economic, health and environmental benefits. We stressed the importance of lobbying potential partners to amplify the impact of these initiatives,” they said.
Finally, the Rwandan model was recognized.
They emphasized that these achievements had been made possible thanks to Rwanda’s inclusive legal framework, which enables refugees to set up organizations, and to the support of partners such as UNHCR, Inkomoko, BCT, FCI, the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience (ICSC) and Spirit in Action (SIA).
Ms Kelly T. Clements, the United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees, and her colleagues from Rwanda and the East African region appreciated these activities, pointing out that this is the UNHCR’s model for ensuring that refugees are no longer seen as a burden, but rather that they can contribute by providing solutions and participating in the development of host countries and communities.
Legal representative Ferdinand Ndayiragije and FMV Executive Director Reverien Gahimbare agreed that the meeting offered a unique opportunity to showcase FMV’s work and strengthen advocacy for greater collaboration on behalf of refugees.
Besides FMV, there were other refugee-led organisations and individuals participants carrying out entrepreneurial and income-generating activities with social impact in Rwanda, some of which/them are based in Mahama camp, which hosts more than 65,000 Burundian and Congolese refugees in eastern Rwanda.
some of pictures of the évent:
