Week Six

Our Sixth Week was an exciting one, as we had been waiting for the real action of making the cooking stoves in Gatovu and Mundima to start.

On Monday we could not start as expected due to the fact that the resources were being brought from Muhanga. On Monday evening, the clay bricks finally arrived and the trainers arrived in Cyangugu to start training the next day. While waiting for the resources to arrive, we had a free day so the team decided to visit one of the prisons here, when we got to the entrance the prison guard informed us that we needed permission from the head office in Kigali.

On Tuesday, the team attended meeting at the Diocese office concerning the cooking stoves project. The meeting involved the participants needed for the implementation of the project. The 10 animators (trainees), 2 experts, the village leaders from Gatovu and Mundima as well as Sam and Michael from RDIS were present. The meeting was planned to inform more about the importance of the cooking stoves, discussing about the budget, materials used and how the stoves were going to be constructed. Sam led the meeting, he was able to explain the environmental implications from using lots of firewood. Samuel, one of the expert trainers got the chance to explain how to build the stoves. Afterwards, we were all shown the special clay bricks that had come from Muhanga.

Wednesday was the day we started building the cooking stoves. We were divided into two groups, one group went to Gatovu (Patrice, Faith and Roxane) and the others went to Mundima (Valentin and Claudia) in order to learn how to build the Rondereza and also mentor that the selected beneficiaries received the cooking stoves. We participated in building the Rondereza by collecting mud, laying the bricks and mixing the materials. On that day, the total number of cooking stoves completed was 9, 5 in Gatovu and 4 in Mundima. In the evening, Roxane and Faith made some delicious pastry, a South African pastry called koeksisters.

On Thursday we continued from the previous day. Patrice, Faith and Roxane spent the day in Gatovu and Valentin and Claudia were in Mundima. The cooking stoves made were 6, 3 in each village.  The total number of cooking stoves completed in those two days were 15 in both villages.

On Friday, the experts built 11 stoves in Mundima and Gatovu, while the animators had gone for training at the Diocese office. The experts left on Friday evening.

 As usual on Saturday, we went to help at the feeding clinic. We played games with the kids, Faith brought some colour chalks along with her so the girls where with the children as they drew on the floors of the empty rooms. The children are very creative; there were definitely some Picasso artists amongst them!  Valentin helped by fetching water for the moping and the washing up.

Sunday was a special and wonderful day for our team. Patrice, Claudia, Roxane and Faith sung a couple of songs at the Anglican Church. After church, we attended restoration church which ended at 12pm. We came back home for lunch with Jeanne, the village leader of Gatovu. In the afternoon, Theo our driver drove us to Emiralde hotel for our weekly outing. We had all some soft drinks, Patrice, Valentin and Theo had samosas for appetisers while Roxane, Faith and Claudia ordered some desserts.

We also met David, CEO of Rwanda Aid and his friend Patrick at the hotel, we stopped for a chat when we were about to leave. It was a great day!

-    -  Written by Valentin and Patrice