Olivier Twagimanya

I am 18 years old.  I live with my mother because my father has passed away.  There are five children in my family.  I love my family, especially my mother and my little brother.

When I lived at home, there was no way to go to school.  Eventually, I decided to live on the streets until I came to FIDESCO.  FIDESCO paid my school fees and encouraged me to move back to live with my family.  Life on the streets was too difficult.  I saw many children die, some turn to prostitution and others being tortured.

In life, I really like to study.  For me, school is the same as heaven.  When we are at school together, everyone smiles and shares time with one another.  I would like to be a DJ and a journalist because I believe these things can make other people happy and enjoy life.  I would like to use my life to change the way poor people live if possible.

I would like people to know that Rwanda is different from other countries in Africa.  Rwanda is known as a country that met with many difficult troubles, including genocide, but now the country has peace, freedom and respect for human rights.  There is security and minimal corruption here.

This new dance program at FIDESCO can really help us.  It keeps our minds and bodies occupied so we don’t turn back to street life or look for drugs.  I hope it continues.