Children playing happily after a refreshment break—it was a joy to see the children from the Jabe orphanage on the grounds of SOPAD (Solidarity for the Promotion of Sustainable Agriculture), where they had come to receive a supply kit for the start of the school year. Committed to assisting vulnerable individuals and marginalized communities, SOPAD organized a back-to-school campaign to collect school supplies to distribute to the children at the orphanage.
Under the theme “Let’s Make Every Day an Opportunity to Grow,” SOPAD provided each child with a backpack, uniforms, shoes, and all the supplies needed for the start of the school year. Joy was evident on the children’s little faces as they eagerly looked forward to returning to school soon. In a joyful and festive atmosphere, SOPAD’s activities coordinator emphasized the role of education, noting that it is not merely a matter of will but rather a noble mission to which everyone is called to contribute. After explaining the mission and various activities of the organization hosting the event to the administrators of the Jabe orphanage, he noted that helping a child go to school is equivalent to serving the entire nation in the long term.
A gesture praised by the orphanage’s administrators
Ms. Munezero Frédiane, who represented the Jabe orphanage and accompanied the children during the activity, reflected on the impact this gesture has on the children’s hearts based on her experience. In her words of thanks, she strongly urged the children to see this gesture as an example they should follow when they grow up. For her, helping an orphaned child means showing them that, regardless of their circumstances, they can find new parents, and that this act remains particularly meaningful for any child growing up in conditions such as those faced by children in orphanages. She concluded her remarks with a blessing for the organizers and for everyone who had helped send these children to school, and she humbly asked SOPAD to maintain this commitment and to always keep in mind this orphanage, which requires significant resources—not only to send the children to school, but also to feed them, clothe them, and reintegrate them into families.
Happy to be back at school…
Delighted to taste the NIKO juice made by the young people supported by SOPAD and to share the snack provided by the young people in the DUHURIREHO program, the children jump for joy, eager to return to school as the bell is about to ring.
Games and dancing filled the air as the children had fun putting on their school backpacks after trying on uniforms, shirts, skirts, and shorts sewn as part of the TWINAGURE Training Center—one of the activities supported by SOPAD to build the capacity of vulnerable girls and women in launching income-generating activities. During the group photo, the children laughed, smiled, teased one another, and made funny faces for the camera, tirelessly expressing their joy.
ID Editorial Team.
