We are committed to turning around the lives of homeless children and young people in Rwanda’s capital, Kigali. Our work helps young people driven onto the streets by the combined effect of the 1994 genocide, rural poverty, and conflicts within families.
We founded a centre in 2008 that provides a desperately needed home for young people who have been orphaned, neglected or left in difficult situations. The centre provides shelter, education and guidance with the ultimate aim to help them live a self sufficient life.
We believe that everybody has a right to a life that can be lived. Not just survived.
Ubaka U Rwanda Youth Centre
Our work is coordinated from our youth centre located in Kigali. It currently provides a home for over 20 boys, providing access to education and medical care for those whose parents are unable to support them. The centre also supports many more in the local community. We run several prevention programs for those at risk of becoming street children, arrange foster placements where possible, and support those still living in the street with food, finding family and attending school. The centre is run by foster parents Evode & Rebecca Usbyamahoro. Evode became a street child himself after the 1994 genocide, and started the initiative that forms Ubaka U Rwanda today. Learn more about the background to the centre…
Our Mission
To prevent and relieve poverty in Rwanda and to advance the Christian faith for the benefit of the public in accordance with the statement “the love of Christ compels us”.
Our vision and goals for the centre are to:
- To meet basic needs: food, clothing, sanitation, medical care, discipleship, protection from harm and provide shelter through accommodation at the centre;
- To provide emotional support;
- To assist with education, skill based training and work;
- To assist reconciliation with families where possible;
- To enable step-by-step progression, being sensitive to individual needs.
- Prevent vulnerable families and children from becoming street children to begin with
Through providing the above the young people will have the opportunity to develop into self-sustaining, happy, healthy, productive members of their communities.