Ruth.

I want my children to complete their education and have opportunities that I did not have.

There are not many opportunities for employment, especially for women and girls.

Women are being left behind.

My name is Ruth, I am 28 years old and I am a single mother of three sons living in Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement.

In the host community where I live in Rwamwanja, you need a business to succeed. There is a shortage of work here. If you hustle and come up with your own idea, your own solution is better than waiting for employment.

Ruth holds her kale crop in her hands.

In Rwamwanja, I work as an agronomist specialising in horticulture and climate-smart agriculture. I thought I was doing ok; I was employed, receiving a monthly salary and comfortable. But I came to the realisation that I needed to grow beyond that comfort.

Opportunity trained me in financial literacy and business. They encouraged me to start small and showed me how to multiply. Before I would spend my entire salary when I received it and I’d anxiously wait for next month’s salary, but Opportunity taught me how to save.

I immediately started my business with the little money I had. I grow and sell vegetables, which makes money steadily. People came to know me and started calling me directly, especially from restaurants.

When my children go to school, I now have money in my account.

Before I could only afford to buy them books at the start of the term, but now I am able to pay at least half of the school fees and the school requirements.

Ruth tills some land on her farm at sunset.

My children live with my mother. I used to think it was impossible, but now I send them money every weekend. Today, they’re able to buy meat or rice, they have bread for breakfast and can change their diet weekly.

I am also able to get the things I want. In the past I would spend at least two months getting something I needed urgently.

But now I can access my needs within a week.

I am grateful for the skills we received. I was finally able to start my own business after struggling to for a long time.

Ruth stands in her kale field holding a crop in her hand.
Ruth smiles as she tends to her kale crop
Ruth examines a kale leaf in her crop field.
Ruth harvests amaranth from her demonstration plot.
Ruth stands in her field holding her crop at sunset.

Life in Rwamwanja is not easy. There is not enough land for agriculture, so food has to be bought. There are also not many opportunities for employment, especially for girls and women. Education levels in women are very low too. Girls drop out of school early.

They are being left behind.

That’s why I encourage girls to get involved in youth savings groups, so that they can access some capital to use as a stepping stone. To date, I have mentored ten women on how to start their own businesses.

Opportunity encouraged me to join a savings group. Being part of a savings group helps me when an unexpected need comes up and I have no cash, I can borrow from the savings group.

I’m no longer afraid to start a business. I use the skills we were taught and savings to help me.

Now I can pay for all my basic needs and I have been able to buy a plot of land with two rooms. I also feel more confident.

Ruth sits in a chair1 draped in white fabric reading her Bible

I feel more stable. I do not have a lot of money, but I can cater to my basic needs and I can pay my children’s school fees.

Looking ahead, I would like to open an agro-input. I have experience in it and know how it is run. It would also make it easier for me to get pesticides, fertiliser and seeds. If I had the seeds in my shop, I would supply farmers but also become my own supplier.

What I need now is the capital. I don’t have enough yet to start my shop, but I have all the plans and the budget needed.

Above all, I want my children to complete their education and have opportunities that I did not have.

By passing on the lessons of agriculture, business, and hard work, I hope they can choose their own path in life.

I love my children so much. I want them to be well and complete their education.

 

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