Jeanette Meets her Donor

Jeanette is a 7-year-old girl, in 1st grade from Gashoho ADP in Muyinga province. She comes from a vulnerable family. Poverty obliged her father, Ndaruzaniye to leave his home village. He is working as an ambulant seller in the capital Bujumbura, around 200km away, where he is earning around 10,000 Burundian Francs (6.52 US dollars) per month. Jeanette would have dropped out of school had it not been for World Vision support and encouragement through sponsorship programme.

In Burundi, schooling is mandatory for children ages seven to 13. However due to over a decade-long civil war that ravaged Burundi, many children are dropping out from school. The war plunged communities in poverty, preventing them from participating in their own development, like being able to pay school fees for their children or investing in infrastructure.

A study, school for all, conducted in 2010 by BAFASHEBIGE, “help them to go to school” a local organisation dedicated to improving education, states that during the civil war, the rate of primary attendance declined from 70 per cent in 1993 to 45 per cent in 2003. World Vision Burundi is supporting vulnerable communities through a range of activities. Sponsorship is one of the ways.

Two years ago Jeanette got a donor; Victoria, an Australian sponsor. Victoria recently came to visit her.

Assan Ndaruzaniye and Marie Goreth Kanziza, Jeanette’s parents, welcome Victoria and tell herhow World Vision’s sponsorship programme is significantly contributing to the empowerment of communities, starting from their child. When they meet the donor, it is around 11:00 in the morning.

“Tell her that we are happy to receive her and that we are grateful about what she is doing for our child.”

Goreth sits close to Victoria, looking at her and smiling. Before she starts to speak, she looked at her translator, a World Vision sponsorship manager and laughs.

“Tell her that we are happy to receive her and that we are grateful about what she is doing for our child.” Goreth says.

Jeanette is already leaning on her donor, who is sitting; Jeanette fixedly stares at Victoria’s face. She also looks curiously at a bag posed behind the donor’s chair – it contains presents brought to Jeanette.

“Have I said already that Jeanette has started going to school? No, tell her too, this is very important,” Goreth continues, as she turned back to look at her translator.

Assan Ndaruzaniye, her husband nods as he follows them talking.

“These parents World Vision connects us to, help our children to stay at school even when it is difficult,” Assan intrudes.

He explains that donors encourage children to study by sending different supports to their families. They support children with school materials, clothes or cows and goats, which improve their livelihood and enable parents to feed their children with nutritious food.

They go to school after having drunk milk; this gives them enough energy to study well. Some neighbouring families to Goreth are already enjoying such benefits, she says.

According to Goreth, there are many reasons that can push her to keep Jeanette home. She doesn’t because she knows that one day donors can chip in.

“When my husband left us, I spent a long time without knowing where he is. I would have prevented Jeannette to start school, but I did not. I was encouraged by the possibility of getting a support from World Vision. We wish World Vision to prosper; we’ve gained a lot since we started working with it.” Goreth says.

Assan finds it difficult to go frequently home because of lack of means. He can’t afford to pay a ticket for himself even after working for a whole month.

“I am very impressed to hear that. What I give is almost nothing if I consider its value, back home in Australia. I am encouraged.” Victoria says, wishing Jeanette to prosper.

Felix Niyonsaba, World Vision sponsorship coordinator in Gashoho ADP, explains that besides direct support by donors to vulnerable families, through gifts-in-kind and gifts notification, the child sponsorship programme is helping needy children to get access to clean drinking water, sanitation, education, skills for future livelihood, nutrition and health care. These supports help enable children to live life in its fullness.