Eastern Region

Area: 1585.3 km. sq.
Population: 283,456
Districts and communities: 1 district, 603 villages
Sponsored children: 8,000

Plan opened its offices in Rwanda in 2007. Through our programme unit situated in the eastern part of Rwanda, we are helping many children gain access to violence-free education, safe water, food and health services. The semi-arid Gatsibo district is home to 603 villages and its inhabitants are mainly subsistence farmers.

Programme highlights
Girls’ education

Although Rwanda achieved gender parity in net primary school enrolment in 2001, the challenge is how to retain girls in schools, to ensure they succeed and that they complete their primary education. In Gatsibo district, girls are kept out of school due to poverty and cultural beliefs that place more value on education for boys than for girls..

Plan Rwanda supported the local community to build a primary school at Ruhuha and a girls’ dormitory at Kiziguro Secondary School. Classes for girls are helping to improve their performance, and communities are becoming more awarene of the importance of girls’ education.

Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD)

We have established ECCD centres that offer young children the support they need to grow physically, socially and emotionally. 

Working with the community, Plan Rwanda helped to build a hospital at Kabarore to support mothers with children under 6 years old. We are providing 1 cow per family to ensure proper nutrition of the children in these families.

Youth empowerment

We work through youth cooperatives to strengthen youths´ livelihoods by helping them to develop skills, receive vocational training, and access financial services through village savings and loans groups.

Child rights and advocacy

Plan promotes child rights and protection issues through community meetings, community volunteering, and workshops with youth and children. We also provide learning materials for children's clubs and encourage chilren to speak out on issues affecting their lives through audio visual and print media publications.

Activities are also held to celebrate Day of the African Child, Child Rights Convention day and other child related events.