Jesuit Urumuri Centre (JUC) in collaboration with the Business Development Center (BDC) Rwanda has officially begun the training of the third cohort of the youth empowerment program. 37 youths have enrolled for the 3-month training on social innovation and entrepreneurship program which will be undertaken with the help of the program’s manual.

The program, which is a fruit of the timeless commitment of the Jesuit Urumuri Centre to help young adults in Rwandan society surmount the challenges of unemployment and despairing mentality, as former JUC director Fr Patrice put it, was initiated for its beneficiaries to learn innovation and entrepreneurship in order to create jobs for themselves as well as for their peers. During this training, beneficiaries will be taken through training in five modules namely; (1) Self-discovery (2) Self-realization, innovation and prototyping (3) Marketing and promotion (4) Operations, financing and financial management and lastly (5) Strategic planning and sustainability.

JUC programs manager Prudence Kayiranga, sj, was this week on hand to welcome beneficiaries back to Jesuit Urumuri Centre following last week’s bootcamp exercise from which a final selection of beneficiaries was made. During his remarks, Kayiranga reminded beneficiaries of the investment made for the program to have it possible; “I urge you once again to appreciate the labor that went into thinking about this project and persuading partners that it would be worthwhile, for our youth. The Church loves you and the Society of Jesus has it in its mission, to accompany the youth. Do take  full advantage of this opportunity. Learn as much as you can, ask all questions you might have, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity”.

Present also was Mr. Anaclet Bagirishya, a BDC affiliated trainer, who also encouraged beneficiaries to realize how valuable the training is; “This program is special because we are not only teaching business but we are teaching it the Christ like way. JUC is a faith based organization, and we of course are Christians first, so we teach you about ‘Kingdom businesses’. The businesses you will establish will not be any kind of business, but a business that will serve not only you but the people around you as well as your communities”.

As a Jesuit apostolate, Jesuit Urumuri Centre is guided by the four Universal Apostolic Preferences, one of them being; accompanying the youth in the creation of a hope-filled future. JUC therefore is humbled and grateful to her partners and collaborators for enabling her to run this program for these youth, who consist of Rwandans, Burundian refugees and foreign nationals.

Par Henriette Mushimiyimana,

JUC Communication Officer.