Telling the ECSA Story

By Ninon Ndayikengurukiye Oh Motherhood, wonders of wonders That’s what parents and elders have taught me That motherhood was precious That a smile from a newborn is Such a song that brings to the seventh heaven But I've realized it takes more than a kid’s smile to be a happy mother Oh Motherhood, river pebble Hopelessness when I realized That I did not have enough milk to breastfeed the bones of my own bones And no money to appease their hunger A great sadness lay in me, which overpowered me I break into tears and wince of sorrows In a tighter timeframe, my hopes to be a good mother darken And I realized it takes strength to fail and still stand Memory, Oh memory, Blue like this scarf with unfathomable depths that carries our pain Drown in my kids’ innocent starving eyes Unable to breastfeed them Beaten like a criminal by the father of mine I experienced long months of hospitalization Beaten for missing breast milk, Body’s milk which I’m not potter Distraught after the de

My name is Aline YAMINYOBORA. I am 23 years old. I live on Buseruko hill, in Mugina commune of Cibitoke province. I was born in a modest family. My father Jérôme NSABIMANA, a 62 years old butcher and my mother Félicité HAKIZIMANA, 48, a farmer, both manage to provide for their six children: 3 girls and 3 boys and I am the fifth child of this family. Since my young age, my mother has always advised me to study, prepare my future, pay attention to boys who could mislead me and destroy my life but I did not pay attention. At the age of 15, I was in 6 th grade and I passed the national test but could not get the grade required to go to high school. I had to leave my commune to study in a private craft school and I took the sewing option. The school was located in another neighboring commune of Rugombo where I had to walk one hour in the morning and evening. There are lots of vehicles, motorcycles, bicycles on Mugina and Rugombo road. People I didn’t know could stop to give me an

October 1, 2018 My name is Towongo Richard, I am 23 years old from Yei, South Sudan. I married my wife in 2016 and we are blessed with a baby girl, who is now 1-year old. We started our journey to refuge in October 2017 around 6:00pm on a Sunday due to the ongoing civil war and target killings in South Sudan. Soldiers were killing people in our village without discrimination. We went about 1-mile into the bush to avoid the soldiers from the main road. I was moving with my bicycle, however it got spoiled and I had to abandon it. My wife, being very pregnant, was only able to carry some flour for cooking. We reached a water point and decided to make some food. The water tasted bitter but we were thirsty and hungry and had no choice but to use it. At around 2:00am we reached the foot of Nyangliba mountain and decided to rest there for the night. Role Model Men and Boys in training. After a couple days, we reached the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) border. We entere

April 21, 2018 Peter Gismala “Sakata” is a South Sudanese refugee living in Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement in Northwestern Uganda. With his wife Besta, he has two children and arrived in Uganda in August 2016. Peter Gismala, Wife Besta and Children at their home   in Ariwa Village, Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement, Arua District Uganda. “When I first reached Uganda, life was difficult and I resorted to over drinking alcohol and taking drugs like mairungi and opium as a way of coping with life at the refugee settlement. This instead made me become violent and aggressive to my family and friends. I would come home late, after 12:30am, very drunk and never cared whether the family had eaten or not. I would beat my wife whenever she tried to plead with me to come home early. Several times I came home when I had urinated and defecated on myself. Whenever my wife asked me about it, I would just beat her. My wife tried several times to advise me to change but instead I wou

CARE International in Uganda, with funding from ECHO  (European Union Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid) completed a Gender Based Violence (GBV) Response and Prevention project in Rhino Camp and Imvepi refugee settlements and host communities, following the influx of South Sudanese refugees in Uganda. CARE supports survivors of Gender Based Violence through psycho-social counseling, and referral to other service points so as to restore dignity and hope for vulnerable women and girls. CARE’s GBV Response helps survivors utilize medical, police and legal resources to ensure their recovery as well as ensuring that perpetrators of GBV are brought to justice. This is a story about CARE’s GBV Response. Nancy* is 29 years old with two children. She fled South Sudan in June 2017 with scant hope of seeing her children and mother, who had travelled to Uganda four months earlier.   Since the father of her children died in the war battle, it was not easy for the single mother to imp

September 18, 2018 Eunice Abuto is 61 years old, currently living with her 4 grandchildren, ages 3, 5, 8, and 15 in Imvepi Refugee Settlement in Northwestern Uganda. Eunice is originally from Yei, South Sudan and arrived in Uganda on March 24, 2017. It took her two days to travel by foot with her grandchildren and group of others leaving the same time. She was only able to carry a few things, including 2 bed sheets, 2 saucepans, and 3 plates. Eunice decided she would bring her grandchildren in order to give them an opportunity to go to school. The children’s mother stayed in South Sudan with her husband, who sends Eunice money. Eunice in front of her previous  temporary shelter. When Eunice arrived at the Reception Center, she was identified as a Person with Specific Needs (PSN) because she was elderly and the guardian of children. She was given a temporary shelter, built by CARE and funded by ECHO. This shelter is made of mud walls and covered in tarpline. These she