me we continued to support the community through a variety of efforts (online babysitting and cultural exchange programs, building a cafeteria for a local nursery). We are now focused on opening a community kitchen to address food insecurity for children and mothers.
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We believe that "one can make a difference"
As a member of the community, we strive to support not only our staff but other single mothers and children through the following programs:
【Community Kitchen】
Before the pandemic, Kiseki was primarily a Japanese restaurant. After the pandemic, we became a social enterprise that directly provides meals to the women and children in our community. The community kitchen is supported by our partnerships with individuals, restaurants, and retail stores from Rwanda, Japan, and around the world. The donations and support from individuals and our partner organizations pays for the ingredients, labor, and distribution of meals in the community. For example, every hand bag sold at our partner ABC store provides 3 meals. The community kitchen is also supported by our online cultural exchange programs and in-person volunteer programs where we provide opportunities for Japanese and other foreign nationals to volunteer abroad in Rwanda.
【ECD Kimihurura】
We provide support to ECD Kimihurura, a local nursery school. As ECD Kimihurura is a community owned school, it is partially supported from parents. To support these parents, Kiseki provides management support, teaches basic education (Montessori / online), employs teachers, grants scholarships, provides job opportunities, and delivers Kawunga (Maize flour) and beans.
【ICT Room】
Teachers in ECD Kimihurura are passionate and doing a great job. To help them diversify their curriculum and increase digital literacy, we provide devices and connections to classrooms all around the world. For example, we have had Japanese university students teach arts & crafts, Singapore high school students teach English, Swedish primary school students sing together, and Rwandan university students teach robotics.
【Cultural exchange program】
We offer an online platform for people all around the world to share each other's cultures. We open up a ZOOM channel every week (Monday-Friday from 9am-3pm (GMT+2)) to offer a variety of programs, such as singing, dancing, teaching Rwandan language, virtual village tour etc.
【Volunteer program】
We offer online & in-person opportunities for Japanese and other foreign nationals to volunteer abroad in Rwanda. Prior to the pandemic, we housed 100 volunteers from Japan every year. Since the pandemic, we have shifted the majority of our volunteer programs online.
- In-person program: In-person volunteers support our work at ECD Kimihurura and the community kitchen. Activities include, teaching English, music, drawing, arts & craft, etc. Find out more information on our volunteer program here: https://www.kisekirwandatravel.com/about-kiseki-rwanda-in-english
- Online program: We have a "let's speak Japanese" program where Japanese people are able to teach our community Japanese.
【Dress for Two】
Dress for Two is a program where a customer and local resident can share one kitenge (traditional fabric) to make two articles of clothing (dress or other clothing item). For every clothing item you purchase, Gretti (one of the best tailors in Rwanda) will make the same clothing item for a women in Rwanda. To date, Kiseki has sold more than 300 dresses (150 to Japan and 150 for Rwanda). For now, we can only ship to Japan or provide these dresses for in-person. For shipping to Japan, please find more information here:
Thank you for your support. Together we can help make a big difference in supporting the women and children in our community.
