K-Blog

CNN reports: "Women are the economic backbone of Rwanda" -- we couldn't agree more!

CNN recently profiled a few women making a living for themselves and their families in Rwanda. The article points out that these sorts of stories of women who are working hard, starting savings accounts and looking for business opportunities are what has helped Rwanda recover from the devastating economic effects of genocide.

Kageno couldn't agree more! So often we find women are the ones saving all earnings to fund their children's school fees or paying for health visits. And we like to support their efforts. We hope to bring our microloan program from Kenya, which specifically extends loans to women, to Rwanda soon. In the meantime, we support women-operated co-ops that make crafts that we help sell abroad and employ women in the school, feeding program, agriculture or for special projects like making uniforms for the nursery school students. We hope to help them, help Rwanda, continue to grow!

Thanks to Ryan for sharing the article with us. Check out the full story HERE. 

(c) 2011 | Wieland Brendel & Anke Droege | www.wielandbrendel.de

Nathalie - the perfect example - hard at work in her very own shop in Banda Village. She works with Kageno on various projects

Good news and growth for sub-Saharan Africa

Today Reuters is reporting that sub-Saharan African growth will likely average six percent in the coming year. Read about this positive outlook for the region here:

http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79I03T20111019?cid=nlc-dailybrief-daily_news_brief-link20-20111019

 

Fall update from Jarod & Sarah: Progress

Greetings from Banda Village, Rwanda!

It has been a rather long time since I have written and for that I apologize.  But that isn't to say that nothing has been happening here in Banda.  Actually, on the contrary, things have been very busy around here.  The briquette factory is up and running and producing 300+ briquettes a day.  These briquettes are an alternate fuel source made from sawdust, paper, cardboard and any other bio-degradable materials and cost half the price of charcoal, not to mention help with the issue of deforestation in and around Nyungwe National Park.  Kageno has hired 3 new workers to staff the machine and they are all enjoying their new job and
steady source of income.

Tomas pressing briquettes on the machine

Briquettes drying in the greenhouse 

Also, a brand new cow shed has been built that can hold up to 8 cows. The cows that will be house there will produce milk that we can use as a supplement with the feeding program, their manure will be harvested and used in Kageno agricultural program as natural fertilizer.  Plus, the shed has been built and designed to collect the waste of the cows which will be turned into bio-fuel and used to cook in the Kageno Kitchen.

Front of the new shed

Inside the new shed

There is also some exciting news with the Kageno Malnourished Feeding Program.  For a while now, roughly 35 children (diagnosed malnourished by the Kageno Nurse) have been coming to Kageno everyday for their cup of Sasoma, a vitamin and nutrient enriched porridge designed to help children fight malnutrition.  But, sadly, for many of these kids it is the only meal they receive a day.  And while is is extremely good for them, it is simply not enough.  Kageno has been desiring for some time to incorporate other foods into their daily meal, these foods being harvested from the Kageno garden.  Well, just recently we have been able to start doing this and the kids are receiving an additional source of much needed protein.  We are also planting many new vegetables and fruits in the garden which will be incorporated into the diet of these children in the upcoming harvesting seasons.

Girls on the feeding program enjoying carrots

Feeding program children ready to eat

There is no doubt that Banda Village is a special place.  There is just something different about the village that you don't seem to find anywhere else in Rwanda.  Don't take my word, almost every Rwandan that has visited from outside has said the same thing, not to mention nearly every visitor of Kageno.  Banda Village is truly a beautiful place.  Sure it has it's share of difficulties to overcome, but with the help of Kageno working hand in hand with the community, we are getting there.  If you want to visit a place that will change the way you perceive life and maybe even the way you live it, book your plane ticket and get out here.  I assure you.  You will not be disappointed.

Jarod Ring
Peace Corps Volunteer
Rwanda, Africa

More Yoga for Good!

On Sunday, September 25th, Jordan Mallah and Andrea Frade will host a yoga benefit experience at ViraYoga in Soho to benefit Kageno!

Join these awesome teachers and learn how to integrate your mind, heart, and body to create deeper purpose in your life. Together, we will deliberately shift the fabric of our consciousness, move intention into action, and harness the fire of hope in our hearts to catalyze peace in the world. (And benefit a good cause!)

Space is limited so sign-up today: Practice for Peace From Soho to Africa with Love 

Suggested donation is $40

Namaste!

Namaste in Kinyarwanda?

The Huffington Post recently covered Project Air's yoga sessions for genocide survivors and HIV-positive women in Rwanda. 

Read the article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/31/project-air-yoga-rwanda-hiv-women_n_914521.html#s304324

Reminds us of Kageno's own yoga retreat in Banda: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIzo6ZFG_Bs 

 

Health & Nutrition Hard at Work

Thanks to the generosity of Mike at Consolidated Graphic Communications, we were able to print health-related lessons on large durable materials at a very low cost. These resources are indispensable to us because they allow us to spread valuable info to the local community, which helps combat things like poor nutrition or hygiene, hook worms, or lack of family planning.

Take a look at Jeremiah, Kageno's enthusiastic nurse, hard at work educating the community on the importance of a balanced, diverse diet. This nutrition lesson was a hit and some local mothers asked many follow-up questions about how to give their children the nutrients they need.

Sarah gave Jeremiah a hand answering questions & giving examples since she studied nutrition in school

Class participation as a woman stands up to respond to one of Jeremiah's questions 

Amata: A New Addition to the Family and Milk Come to Kageno Rwanda

Cows are next to sacred in Rwanda. It's a huge honor to receive one, many steep dowries include multiple, and having a dairy cow is an even greater blessing. So it was nothing short of exaltation and celebration when Kageno Rwanda'a very own cow, Callixte, gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Mutamuriza!

As if having an adorable new calf around is not exciting enough, we were also able to add milk to the feeding program for the most malnourished children! The first day we had fresh milk, we boiled it and let the kids try it out. Some children had never had milk apart from breast feeding as babies so the experience was, well, weird. A few kids were skeptical, but many couldn't get enough!

From now on, we will add milk to the sosoma  (nutritional porridge) that is served to the malnourished kids on the feeding program. This should provide an excellent source of nutrients like calcium that they would otherwise have difficult accessing. 

More pictures of the new baby calf will be forthcoming, but for now, enjoy these images of kids trying out the amata:

Mama Sophia & Sarah boiling milk

Mama Sophia serving milk to some boys on the feeding program

 

Sosoma now with milk!

Chantal waiting for her milk to cool

 

Back from Banda...

... and missing it already!

Nicole here. I just returned from my first trip to Banda Village and I have so many exciting things to share! Banda is truly one of the most beautiful and magical villages I have ever seen and its people are incredibly inspiring. Please read the next few posts to see pictures and hear more about the newest addition to the Kageno family, a staff wedding, upcoming projects and more exciting news from on-the-ground!

 

Piece to Peace & United Arrows host a benefit for Kageno

As a part of OmniPeace Week (5/24 - 5/29), Piece to Peace  and United Arrows hosted an event on Saturday, May 28th, to benefit Kageno's nursery school uniforms.

The party was held at United Arrows Beauty & Youth in the Harajuku section of Tokyo.  The 2010 Miss Universe Japan, Maiko Itai, hosted the event and music was spun by DJ MURO, and the artist Anwar Sadat flew in from Uganda.

The exciting event raised $11,000 in just one night! Proceeds were donated to provide new school uniforms for the children in Banda Vilage, Rwanda. 

Thank you so much to Dan Goldstein and Piece to Peace as well as United Arrows, Maiki Itai and everyone else who participated in the event. Kageno appreciates your support!

 

ⒸMiss Universe Japan

ⒸMiss Universe Japan

ⒸMiss Universe Japan

ⒸMiss Universe Japan

   

ⒸMiss Universe Japan 

Spring 2011 Event: A night of cocktails, crafts & creativity!

On May 24th, we celebrated the art created by children as well as the beautiful crafts made by artisans on Rusinga Island, Kenya and in Banda Village, Rwanda. 

We were so fortunate to have so many generous sponsors for the event: Momofuku Milk Bar, Nude Vodka, Asahi Beer and Balance water, and Michael Carr/Deutsche Printing. 

Thank you to everyone who came out to view the exhibit and support A Place of Hope - Kageno! 

 

May update from Sarah & Jarod

The rainy season has come and is mostly gone in Banda Village, which means it is time to start building.  This is the time of the year when everyone that wants or needs to build something, does.  And Kageno is right in the middle of that mix. 

Kageno will be starting to produce briquettes, a bio-fuel alternative to wood and charcoal.  Briquettes will be an amazing addition and resource to Banda Village.  They are made from bio-degradable materials (such as saw dust, paper, cardboard, organic food scraps, etc) and cost half the price of charcoal.  The best thing about the availability of briquettes in Banda Village will be the opportunity to reduce the amount of deforestation that takes place in Nyungwe National Park.  For years people have been gathering fire wood from the park because of the close proximity of Banda Village to the park.  The briquette project will give them a chance to purchase a cheap and environmentally friendly alternative to fire wood.  The project will also provide several jobs and a much needed steady income for many people.

In other news, with the addition of a new Kageno Health Clinic nurse, health care in Banda Village is the best it has been in a long time.  On some days, nearly 100 people show up to meet with and be treated by our revamped medical staff.  It really is quite encouraging to see the trust and happiness that the people of Banda possess in the health clinic now.  Jeremiah, our nurse, can be seen here teaching one of his very enthusiastic health lessons.  If there ever was a person excited and enthusiastic about health care, it is this man.  And that is just what the village needs.

Also, it was mentioned in previous blogs about the huge push for development throughout the entire country of Rwanda.  The town center has really taken a hold of this concept and it is beginning to look like an entirely different place – in a good way, that is.  I hope to have some before and after pictures up soon showing the immense differences.  It really is quite amazing! 

Other than this, things have been pretty quiet around the village.  The rainy season is upon us but we can expect some 2-3 months potentially without rain.  However, because Banda Village sits basically on the edge of a rain forest, a rainy day is never out of the question, no matter what time of year it is!  Thanks for reading and until next time, Murabeho (goodbye).  

 

Spring Event - May 24th - Join us!

Please join us for our spring event on Tuesday, May 24th. We'll be selling artwork and crafts from the children and artisans of the communities. We look forward to seeing you there!

 

Great news and progress from the health clinic

Sarah and Jeremiah have been working very hard lately to help expand the scope and capabilities of the health clinic. Their efforts have proven very successful...

The duo was recently all over Nyamasheke tracking down important individuals to discuss many urgent issues surrounding the health clinic in Banda. During their trek, they were also able to get some very useful items donated to the clinic. The clinic will now have a gynecological table, two new scales, and a new microscope!

They also received permission to expand the scope of the clinic beyond a "post de santé" to include a laboratory, maternity center, acute dentistry and social services. The clinic now has permission to test for HIV and to perform counseling on its own. Before they were required to have a doctor form Rangiro present.

And, as if all of that was not enough, the dynamic duo also got permission from the Chief de Mutuelle de santé of Nyamsheke to transfer 2 umudugudus (villages) connected to Banda to our clinic! This is incredible news as it means those patients will no longer have to walk more than 5 hours to Yove in order to receive treatment. Instead, they can come to our clinic in Banda. This is obviously a great help to those in need, and it also means a new source of work and revenue for the health clinic.

Great job Jeremiah and Sarah! What an amazing week of accomplishments for the health clinic, Kageno, and the community in Banda. Thank you for all you do!

Meet Pierre!

We have another new addition to the team: Pierre Nkurunziza is Kageno's new agronomist working on the ground in Banda! 

Pierre brings many years of experience in agriculture to the projects in Banda. He has multiple certificates in agriculture and forestry, including one professional certificate, with distinction, in rural development, agricultural and livestock techniques. 

Pierre's work experience is even more impressive as he has worked in rural development with various cooperatives for more than 12 years. He began his career as the forestry technician at the Rangiro Forestry Pilot Project for the Switzerland Technique Cooperative, he later performed soil protection techniques for 10 years for the Isabatera Cooperative in Kirambo, and has also supervised the soil terracing works at Nyabishunju. Most recently, Pierre has worked with the Wild Conservation Society helping to conduct a socio-economic survey of activities with communities around Nyungwe National Park. 

We're excited to expand Kageno's agricultural programs in Banda with the help of Pierre. Welcome Pierre!

Meet Jeremiah!

Jeremiah Hakizimana is a new addition to the Kageno team in Banda as a nurse in the clinic! Jeremiah received his bachelor's degree in nursing from Mwaro University in Burundi. During his studies, Jeremiah wrote a publication evaluating the knowledge of and attitudes towards modern contraceptives among childbearing women.  

Jeremiah has trained and worked on programs dealing with tuberculosis patients as well as the prevention of HIV/AIDS transference between pregnant mothers and their newborns. We are confident that Jeremiah will bring valuable knowledge and skills to the clinic in Banda and we're so thrilled to have him on the team. 

Please join us in welcoming Jeremiah!