Give education & training to Zimbabwean girls

The January 2018 cohort has 40 young ladies who completed the training at Rafiki this quarter. At this stage in the programme they have been in a specialist Internship which will last between 2-6 months. These included the below courses along with how many chose each course. 

6 Hotel & Catering

6 Nurse Aide

6 Interior Design

6 Cosmetology

7 Early Childhood Development or Preschool Teaching

8 Cutting & Designing

2 Cosmetology

For the 8 ladies who began Early Childhood Development and Preschool Training, one has withdrawn from the course in order to have a child. She intends to resume her studies later. Of the 7 who remain all have been offered jobs already - even though they are yet to complete their final exams. This is a great achievement and something they should all be really proud of. 

The May 2018 cohort has had the initial courses being delivered and will soon be ready for their initial graduation. Once graduated they will join with the January cohort for the biggest ever Rafiki Graduation event. They have chosen their Internships and we'll soon see them embark on learning in the range of courses available. This will be a telling phase as they gain skills and confidence in order to move into employment and (often) self-employment. 

The August cohort was made up of 30 young ladies and 10 single mothers. This was the first time that single mothers have been recruited for this intake so it's a great achievement. We've included a few case studies below;

Meet Lian, she is 18 years old and did not collect her O’level results because there was no money to pay her fees. She comes from a broken home father married another wife. Since she was growing up her parents fought over her and no one cared about her welfare. She resorted to prostitution as a solution until one day she met a friend who introduced her to Rafiki. Rafiki became the parent she has always hoped for. She wants to become a Nurse Aide and change her life. 

Then there's Blessing, her parents passed away when she was young. She knows her mother’s history but regarding her father, she has no clue. So sad. Raised by her mother’s relatives, Blessing was born HIV positive, she is only 20. She has a great positive mind and has hope for tomorrow. She believes Rafiki is going to take her somewhere.  She passed three subjects when she was doing her O levels - well done Blessing! She is an encouragement to the other girls. Her confidence will make her go a long way. Blessing wants to do a Pre-School Early Childhood Development Course.

Finally, Vannessa is a single mother of a girl aged three years. She is just 20 years and life has already made her hop and jump because of unplanned marriage. She saw herself as a disappointment to her family by being impregnated and coming back again after being rejected by the man she thought loved her. She also failed her O levels. Vanessa comes from a broken home - her mother passed away and father married a new wife who is not prepared to stay with her. She was very angry with her father and said she hated him with passion. On her first day at Rafiki though... her life tables turned. On orientation she learnt about forgiveness. She cried and shared with the rest of the group that "I forgive my father" and she now values him though he has his short comings. Vannessa trust that Rafiki will change her life. She wants to train in Hotel and catering.

Thank you donors for your suport! 

Links:

• Zimbabwe Educational Trust