In 2004, Edith lost her husband, only a week after giving birth to her fifth child. Economically dependent on her husband since the age of 17, she struggled to keep her family afloat after the sudden loss. Today, she is a farmer supporting her family and making progress. As a full-time smallholder subsistence farmer, Edith’s [...]

The COVID-19 crisis is toppling economic activity and magnifying the number of people living close to and below the poverty line. The World Bank projected that over 49 million people will be pushed into extreme poverty, with a half of that number being in Sub-Saharan Africa. Hunger levels are also expected to spike by the [...]

Jennifer lives in Buhozi village with her husband and their young child. When we first met, their situation was dire. For years Jennifer had tried to grow crops using traditional farming methods resulting in extremely low yields. This meant her family faced food shortage on a regular basis and seldom had anything left to sell. [...]

In the rural community of Nyaruhungye, access to clean and safe water has been a challenge for many years. The most significant impact was felt by the women in the community, who faced the risk of contracting diseases such as typhoid and cholera as they fetched water from stagnant sources. Add to this the 3km [...]

Patience is a single mother of 4 children living in Nyarurambi village. Before we met and began our partnership, her situation was very bleak. She was very proud of her children and how well they were doing in school, but often worried about being able to cover the costs of their education. The uncertainty and [...]

“Raising The Village has been an eye opener for me, helping me do more than I thought I could do at this age. I am a leader, vegetable grower, animal rarer, and I have reached a point where all the basic needs in my home can be obtained without external support. My leadership position has [...]

Teopista is a 46 year-old wife and mother, raising 7 children with her husband. Before she became an RTV partner, Topiesta was already involved with a local women’s group consisting of about 20 members in her community. Together, these women would offer digging services and split the profits evenly. But the income from this business [...]

In the quiet neighborhood of Kigando village, we find Mrs. Jane, a soft spoken 57-year-old widow looking after her three orphaned grandchildren. She is the treasurer of the agricultural livestock group and a member of the Kigando village local council. When we first met two years ago, Jane was worried about feeding her family. The [...]