Sustainable tourism: Red Rocks Cultural Center seeks to lift Rwandan rural women out of poverty

Rwanda is an agro-based country, and more than 80 percent of its population live in villages. Most of them are poor. The majority of these people only have their homestead, and they only have agriculture to invest in. Red Rocks Self Help has identified key areas through which this vast majority of people can invest in and have a sustainable income to lift them out of the chronic poverty they face.

Most of the people in the rural areas around Volcanoes National Park spend a great deal of their time without any sustainable work. Consequently, during these periods, they lack any scope of earning. However, they are quite resourceful with their energy. The Red Rocks Self-Help Scheme, an initiative of the Red Rocks Cultural Centre, aims to avail to these people, small animals like goats, sheep, and pigs that they can raise in their homesteads.

This will help to mitigate the effects of extreme poverty they are facing. In rural Rwanda, women suffer the most from the effects of poverty. Statistics show that in Rwanda, women who are divorced, separated, or have disabled husbands, are over 15 percent of the population, and most of them have children to raise. In effect, they are the heads of their families, and sadly, they fall below the poverty line. What they need is to involve themselves in activities that generate income, which the Red Rocks Self Help Scheme has identified.

Through rearing these small animals, Red Rocks can ensure that the status of these women is changed for the better. Women are known for their resilience, and having this livestock will lift their families up, and ensure that their children get the education and necessary skills they need to enable them to face their future with confidence. The Red Rocks Self Help scheme also aims to eliminate poverty through networking and empowering adolescent girls, young women, and youth micro-entrepreneurs, by providing them with the knowledge and skills that will equip them to become capable and respected women in society.

For more information about this initiative, write to [email protected]