Access to Education

Focusing Support on the Next Generation

Zoe Rwanda Terimbere structures its educational support with a clear distinction: while our primary participants focus on vocational training and income generation to become self-reliant, our formal education interventions are specifically targeted at their younger siblings and dependents. We recognize that the primary participant is often the breadwinner who needs to build a business to sustain the family. Therefore, we do not typically provide school fees or formal schooling materials for the primary participants themselves. Instead, we empower them to take on the responsibility of educating the younger children under their care, breaking the cycle of poverty for the next generation.

Provision of Essential School Kits for Siblings and Reintegration of Dropouts

To ensure that financial barriers do not prevent these younger siblings from attending school, ZOE Rwanda Terimbere provides direct support in the form of school materials and uniforms to siblings who are otherwise unable to afford them. We understand that in the early stages of the programme, a participant’s new business may not yet generate enough profit to cover all household expenses immediately. By bridging this gap with uniforms, notebooks, and pens, we ensure that younger siblings can attend class with dignity and without delay, while the older participant works to stabilize the household income to eventually take over these costs.

Beyond material support, Zoe Rwanda Terimbere actively works with participants to identify and encourage siblings who have dropped out to return to school. Many of these children have left education due to poverty, trauma, or lack of guidance. We collaborate with the participants to sensitize their siblings on the value of education, helping them understand that it is their right and their path to a better future. As long as the sibling is of school age and demonstrates an interest in learning, we facilitate their reintegration into the local school system, ensuring that no child in the household is left behind simply because they lack an advocate.