From a random visitor I turned almost into a complete volunteer. In the end I stayed almost a full week at Noel Orphanage. In a way, it was all very overwhelming, but on the other hand it didn’t feel 100% right either.
Corruption
I first learned about the orphanage through a Belgian couple that’s been visiting them for over five years now. Every year, they spent two to three months amongst the children in order to give them some well deserved attention. Of course, they also bring in some money and every year their donation goes to either blankets, sheets, shoes, food or anything else the children might urgently need. Sounds like an incredible dedication, devotion and love for these children, which I witnessed when I was there.
A couple of months ago, I heard a completely different story from another Belgian woman who has done a thourough investigation to the funding and expenses of the orphanage. Her children had raised quite a lot of money by organizing a rock concert back home and they handed over the money to the orphanage. When she came back little time later, nothing particularly had changed. It raised eyebrows and she was very upset when she found out that all financial donations were being collected on a bankaccount that - according to her report - led to the district’s Bishop, whom she spoke to later on. I’m very curious not only to hear her full story but see the report for myself.
At that time (early 2010) a couple of foreign organisations were already donating huge amounts of money, which would eventually show results somehow in the long run. From what I’ve heard, an American organisation was funding the food, an Indian organisation was paying 10 000€ per month and I’ve learned this week that the English Point Foundation has been there as well since 2006. Then on top of that you have small donators such as the Belgian couple, volunteers and many other individual parties. All this would in theory definitely benefit the orphanage and the results would show somehow.
Through her six-month investigation, which was part of her thesis on International Development Work, the Belgian lady discovered a form of corruption within the local structure and even had to hide for a while out of fear for her safety because she’d exposed too much vital information. These days she is not welcome anymore at the orphanage, but her investigation led to an audit done by officials. I wonder what the result of that audit was and whether she’s proven to be right or wrong. It does make a very interesting story, hearing both very positive and negative reactions.
Point Foundation
Another very positive reaction I got on Monday was from the chairman of the Point Foundation, an English organisation that supports a couple of orphanages in Rwanda and South Africa. Over lunch, I was able to have a brief but interesting chat with him. Since their presence in Noel from 2006 onwards, they have been funding food, medicines, accommodation and water supplies. During their presence they’ve made some substantial improvements regarding accommodation and water supplies. One of their last projects was the refurbishment of the boys dormitories, showers and toilets, which looked tidy and spacious.
Their next project will be the girls’ dorms and toilets, that need to be done urgently. I’ve seen those last and it’s outrageous and unbelievable the kind of circumstances in which they’ve been washing themselves. The toilets (French model) are full of poo, no water to flush and no toiletpaper. I found two big bins full of sanitary napkins, which were all over the place, disgusting. It’s good to know that an organisation like this is taking care of those basic needs and I’m sure the girls all look forward to it as well.
Mr. C. did say he kept the project in own hands and monitors the expenses of the orphanage. “Not that I don’t trust these people’, he said, “but it’s important to keep things under control”. Kind of obvious when you run such a big organisation. His organisation will also employ a librarian to open up shop. With some American help, medical supplies and computers will also be heading this way in the very near future.
Missing toys
On Monday, Kayti and I wanted to distibute our goodies to the children, but Maman Director had told us off. She didn’t like people handing out things “because it’s not good for the children”. All donations should be handed over to the local staff, who will distribute it accordingly, she said. According to my source, they never distribute anything. She had a container full of shoes and other things, but seemed to have found them eventually on the local market where they were sold. The children never get to see any of the goods donated to them if they don’t get it directly and even then, stuff ‘disappears’.
We did witness that last part ourselves as well. Kayti handed out some toys, only to find them missing the day after, which made her a bit upset. She left them with a group of one-year old toddlers, who hardly get anything to play with, but the next day the maman’s knew nothing about them. One of the other volunteers did check upon them again, but no result. It’s a neverending story as stuff seems to disappear the whole time.
I did understand the maman’s philosophy that if you give out things, all children should get something and I do agree with that. The Belgian couple had an incident with the girls last year and decided to let go of them and devote their time to the boys. Of course they all got the attention which made the girls even more angry at them. Personally, from an education point of view, I didn’t agree with that, because that is exactly how you create these kind of situations that maman Director is trying to avoid. You can’t favour one group over the other, even if it’s only human to do so and especially if you had an unfortunate experience with some of them. But at the same time, you want to be appreciated and you spend time with the people that give the same respect in return.
But nevertheless, the children rarely get the attention that people such as the Belgian couple or the sporadic volunteers give them and so they are overly excited whenever they get to do things or whenever they get some goodies. So that did make me question whether or not they were actually getting things from all the material donations that’ve been made.
Take it back
Maman wanted to see the things we had brought along and suggested to call some children, hand out the goodies, take a picture for our donators back home and then collect everything again to put it in the stockroom. I was stunned by what she said, but the next thing just shocked me. I said that all the contributors at home wanted the children to have it and that I would have to take everything back if it would end up in the stockroom – or maybe even worse: the local market. She smiled in a denigrating way and waved her hand saying ‘then you can keep your stuff and take it back’. It made me furious! Was this really such a needy orphanage? They seem to be quite well off then if she’s even in the position to refuse things. I was shocked and sad and angry at the same time and felt really sorry for the children, who’re always the victim.
I’ve told other volunteers about that particular situation and some were hesitant leaving things behind as well due to a similar experience they had. On my last day, we took some smaller girls into the library – a place where they’d never been before apart from the time the volunteers are there, because it’s forbidden to go there – and started drawing and colouring. When I handed out crayons, they’d almost rip them out of my hands, not understanding they had to share with everybody. It made me almost angry at some point and I had to be very strict with them. Rulers, scissors, crayons, erasers had to be put in the middle and everyone was only allowed one at a time. It was exhausting and until someone explained them in Kinyarwanda, they just didn’t get the whole idea of ‘sharing’. By the end of our little creativity session, they’d gotten on quite well and clearly enjoyed being there. Again, it’s such a rare event for them to get this kind of attention, they must feel as if they need to get most out of it, including all the stuff that’s in the middle of the table.
Give me
Some of the children were actually quite annoying at some point. I just spoke about favoritism and of course I had some favourite children as well, but never gave them more attention than others. That being said, some of the smaller boys were becoming very annoying in the end, even throwing stones at the gate. They were used to be given three months of full attention by the Belgian couple and they wouldn’t accept no from us, thinking we had the same stuff with us to give to them. We didn’t want them in the house and we disliked the fact they waited for us, only to say ‘give me money, give me a car, give me a balloon, give me a sweetie’. And even when we gave out something, they acted as if it was the most normal thing in the world. I don’t like that kind of mentality.
I certainly don’t want to be seen as a white God to whom the children owe the biggest thank you when they’re given something, but I do expect some basic politeness and respect. Again, we’re seen as if money grows on our backs and buying them things is peanuts. Random volunteers and donators add even more to that image by showing up with a big check, posing with maman Director for a picture and then heading off without asking further questions, as I witnessed myself one day. Well, I do questioned everything and everyone should.
My way
In general, I – personally - feel there’s a lack of basic discipline. Not sure how other volunteers feel about it and I’m not saying you should rule an orphanage like a dictator, but some sort of structure would be welcome. Most of the older children, - when not at school or playing sports – just hang around, do nothing, lay on their beds to sleep a bit. They seem so bored while many of them have talents and a sense of creativity. Also, I have always been taught to respect people but also yours and other people’s materials. I felt as if they didn’t learn that overhere. One of the volunteers told me recently she was wondering what the word for ‘please’ was in Kinyarwanda. Her translator had no idea. Would it be a cultural thing not to say ‘excuse me’ or ‘can I please have’? I must find out.
Since they’re not allowed to go to the library on their own, the children need to study on their beds. The Point Foundation funded the library and will be employing a librarian to change this situation. The organisation is also getting wardrobes up so in the near future each child will have some personal space to put things away, but at the moment, stuff is lying around on the beds, the floor or outside in the courtyard. Not sure if I get my point across, but if I’d be an orphan and I’d be given something, regardless how tiny or big it is, I would cherish it as if it was the most precious thing in the world. I was like that as a child and we were taught to respect our personal belongings such as clothes. We’d never be allowed to throw them on the floor or in the mud outside. So in terms of respect and discipline, that does make sense, no?
Another thing I’d do, is make sure there’s some sort of morning gathering, that beds are tidied up, that clothes are folded and tucked away in a box or some place and that children all have something to do. Compare it to any of our youthmovements. We’d have ‘gym’ to wake us up and then have responsibles checking our beds and shoes to make sure it was all tidy. The older boys are already doing a great job and lucky for them, they are a great bunch together. On the girls’ side, I think they’d could improve a bit more, but maybe some of the personalities don’t match and they just don’t care as much, I don’t know.
If it was me running the place, I’d make sure that every room with toddlers has a big plastic tub filled with toys which can be collected afterwards. Compare it to our daycares. It doesn’t take a lot to get this organized I think. For the older children I’d organize study hours, creative artwork, tutoring, cooking class, sewing class, anything to keep them busy and maybe even make some little pocketmoney. They do sell beautiful handmade cards, but I’m not sure who makes these and it would be great to see all of them doing something similar.
I guess the refurbishments come first as hygiene, basic comfort and supplies are mostly needed. Still it’s important not to forget about the social aspect and teach both staff and children new techniques or skills regarding education and basic norms and values.
Compare stories
From my perspective, I wanted to compare the various stories I heard – both positive and negative - from the several people I’ve spoken to and see for myself while staying objective. Of course I had my own personal experience that I do reflect in this blog, but I’m not taking any sides to whether or not there is a form of corruption. I could only write a serious article about that if I compare all the facts, figures and official results to the stories of various witnesses. And the more comments and arguments I get from all parties, the more trustworthy a story becomes. My first experience however was ‘no comment’ which made me suspicious but not less critical or objective.
I do feel sorry for these children and I wish there was more that I could do. On the other hand, I think that the foreign organisations are already putting so much money into this place and doing a wonderful job to get this place up and running. I do have questions about efficiënt funding and communication. I assume all organisations work individually, but I can only tell for sure when I’ve spoken to them.
I am still in doubt about the allegations and would like to find out to what extend they are true or false. I’d like to find out whether the foreign organisations and aidworkers keep things in own hands or wire financial donations directly to the orphanage, regardless of the existence of this alleged bankaccount. I am curious to hear about the outcome of the audit and the results of the report the Belgian lady compiled. Although it’s not the main purpose of my stay in Rwanda, it would be an interesting investigation to different orphanages and how they run their finances.
They still have a long way to go and it takes time and money, but most of all: fairness and the willingness to work and succeed. In this particular orphanage I haven’t witnessed anything extremely bad. The mamans are actually there, every single day, trying to do their utmost for these children. I have no doubt there are places in worse conditions. I had the feeling that in general, the children were quite free and happy and weren’t suffering from neglect or anything like it. I did feel uneasy with maman Director as I personally didn’t like her, but she was well respected by the children and the staff.
Donation
In collaboration with two other volunteers, I decided to reorganize the volunteersroom and sort out some material in boxes such as the rulers and scissors, stickers, coloured paper and puzzles. That will make it easier for future visitors to take something out, play with the children and put it back, without the children fighting over it. We also compiled a note that says all material should go back into that room in order for it not to disappear. Let’s see how long that will last.
I didn’t want to leave the rest of my donations at the orphanage due to the situation with maman Director and the stockroom I saw full of books, pens, pencils and toys. After consulting with volunteers from a different organisation, I decided to hand them out in a nearby rural village where children have nothing at all. Most of them don’t even eat everyday and the French-American doctor there told me they would highly appreciate these kind of things. I also read something about another orphanage where I’d might be able to donate, but I’m worried to find a similar situation as the one described above, whether or not it’s all true.
I do want to take this moment to say THANK YOU to Veerle & Hans, Elke & Simon, Eric & Katrien, KBC Kampenhout, KBC Bonheiden, Fortis Bonheiden, tante Anny, Arnaud, Charlotte, Heike and American Airlines, Luc and all other people I’m forgetting who contributed in any sort of way to this collection. Especially my mom who bought a lot of stuff and organized everything at basecamp, Pascale and SN Brussels Airlines for the transport, Karim for the many airport pick-ups and Lydie for the roadtrip from Kigali to Nyundo. I feel like I’ve let all of you down a bit, but I don’t want you to think it has all been for nothing as I was able to make an entire village of children very happy. We easily donate to good purposes, but this experience has thought me not to rush into ‘good things’ anymore, before going over a checklist. Again, thank you very much for everything, it was an incredible contribution and I was touched by the reactions I got from many.
Jacky
Last but not least, I want to conclude with a short interview I did with Jacky, a 19-year old orphan who came in just after the massacres in 1994. She was two-years old at that time. Her parents were killed and she has no idea whether or not she has relatives who survived the genocide. When I asked her if she was happy here, she said:
“This is our home now, we never knew anything else since we were so young when we came here. Of course we’d rather be with our family and we often wonder where we came from and who our family was. But we have no other choice than accept the situation as it is. This is now our family here, we are all brothers and sisters and one day, we’ll just start our own little family again. We often think about the past, but today we look at the future.”
Monday 28th – Wednesday 30th March, Nyundo 18 degrees
Note: This post has been revised on April 5th due to recent comments from one party. Nothing was censored, but more arguments and well stated comments have been added to make my point clear. Please note this blog is a compilation of actual facts, testimonies and personal reflections and experiences. As a journalist, it is my job to question everything, whether positive or negative. I am not taking any stand in this particular situation, nor have I the interest of accusing or exposing anyone. I do have my own personal opinion about it, which I reflect in this blog. Any well argumented comments, testimonies or even proof (pro/contra) are still very welcome and much appreciated. The more actual facts I have, the more trustworthy an article becomes. And I never ‘infiltrated’ into the orphanage nor stayed for ‘free’. The other volunteer and I discussed a rate for accommodation and meals and in collaboration with the staff we all went to the local market to buy products they urgently needed. Maman Director was very pleased with our contribution.
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