To understand the miracle of this transformation, we must listen to Charity Irangabiye. In her dazzling joy, she compares the dark and isolated years with today’s reality.

“In the past, when a girl started her monthly cycle, she would hide, she would feel ashamed, and she would end up dropping out of school. That help just didn’t exist,” she recalls.

The arrival of dignity kits for teenage girls aged 12 and over was a real trigger. By protecting girls’ privacy and breaking taboos through intensive workshops on gender-based violence (GBV) and psychosocial support, the project has worked miracles: attendance has skyrocketed to over 85%, and the school proudly boasts a record of zero unwanted pregnancies. School authorities, teachers and students are now walking hand in hand.

Classes that smile and a canteen that brings people together

Gone are the days of old, dilapidated classrooms. The landscape has changed dramatically:

• For preschool toddlers : Two new classrooms vibrate to the rhythm of the children’s bursts of voices, installed on 35 brand new chairs, manipulating educational tablets.
• Among the older students of the primary school: Two classrooms have been completely rehabilitated. No more wind and dust: the windows now have beautiful shiny panes. Students study comfortably on 50 desks donated by UNICEF through JRS, with brand new textbooks from grades 7 to 9 in their hands.

The beating heart of the school is also its school canteen. A real magnet for young people of all ages, the smell of hot meals has given back the taste of school. The dropout rate has become almost zero, and the atmosphere is festive in the playground where the children happily compete for the game balls offered by the project. The pedagogical success is there, carried by the joy of learning.

The protection forest: a barrier against fear

A few years ago, the students experienced a trauma: a wind of rare violence literally swept away two classrooms and the principal’s office. To ensure that this emergency situation does not happen again, the students have decided to tame nature.

An environmental club, proudly made up of 13 girls and 12 boys, has created a nursery and planted high-quality trees and shrubs all around the facility. Today, these trees have grown. They form a sacred protective belt that slows down strong winds and ensures the safety of buildings.

Better still, this miniature forest now offers abundant oxygenation, a happy freshness and a benevolent shade under which the students like to rest.

From the design phase to the final acceptance, this project reminds us of an essential truth: when you give a child a healthy environment, a hot meal and his dignity, you are not only saving his school year, you are rebuilding his future.