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NUTRITION THE CHICKEN FARM AND SCHOOL GARDENS FLOURISHED THIS YEAR. NOW IN FULL PRODUCTION, THEY HELPED SUSTAIN THE SCHOOL FEEDING PROGRAMS AND PROVIDE MUCH-NEEDED VEGETABLE AND PROTEIN SOURCES FOR STUDENTS. SCHOOL CHILDREN GOT ONE OR TWO EGGS PER WEEK, FILLING A MUCH NEEDED GAP OF PROTEIN IN THEIR DIETS. THE CHICKEN HOUSE IS ALSO EVOLVING INTO A SOCIAL ENTERPRISE AS THE MANAGEMENT EXPERIMENTS WITH BEST PRACTICES SELLING EGGS AT THE MARKET DURING THE SCHOOL HOLIDAYS IN ORDER TO COVER SOME OF THEIR OWN COSTS. THE GARDENS YIELD VEGETABLES TO SUPPLEMENT SCHOOL LUNCHES BUT ALSO NOW START SEEDLINGS THAT VULNERABLE FAMILIES CAN HAVE TO START THEIR OWN KITCHEN GARDENS. THE GOAL OF THE SCHOOL FEEDING PROGRAM IS TO PROVIDE ENOUGH FOOD FOR STUDENTS TO STAY IN SCHOOL INSTEAD OF DROPPING OUT TO SPEND THEIR DAYS LOOKING FOR NUTRITION. ALSO BY PROVIDING GOOD NUTRITION, WE HOPE TO MAKE STUDENTS MORE READY TO LEARN AND SUCCEED ACADEMICALLY. MOVING FORWARD, WE WILL BE EXPANDING THE EDUCATIONAL PARTS OF THE CHICKEN FARM AND GARDENS. THIS YEAR WE WILL ROLL OUT A CURRICULUM OF AGRICULTURAL LEARNING SO STUDENTS CAN TAKE THEIR LEARNING HOME TO THEIR OWN KITCHEN GARDENS AND FAMILIES. WE ALSO HOPE TO BUILD OUT A SMALL CLASSROOM IN THE CHICKEN HOUSE SO WE CAN HOLD CLASSES TO TEACH STUDENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS HOW TO BEST RAISE CHICKENS. OVER TIME, THIS PROJECT WILL BECOME A SOCIAL ENTERPRISE THAT IS TAKEN OVER BY THE COMMUNITY SO THE BENEFITS CAN EXPAND BEYOND THE SCHOOL WALLS. AS AN OFFSHOOT OF THE SCHOOL GARDEN, IREME IDENTIFIED SOME OF THE MOST VULNERABLE FAMILIES IN THE COMMUNITY. THEY BUILT KITCHEN GARDENS FOR 25 OF THE MOST VULNERABLE FAMILIES IN THE COMMUNITY. SEEDLINGS ARE STARTED AT THE SCHOOL GARDEN AND THEN GIVEN OUT TO THE KITCHEN GARDENS AS THEY ARE READY. IN THE FUTURE, IF THESE FAMILIES HAVE SURPLUS CROPS, THEY WILL CYCLE BACK INTO THE SCHOOL FEEDING PROGRAM. THIS PROGRAM WAS SO SUCCESSFUL AND WELL RECEIVED THAT IREME IS NOW MOVING ON TO THE NEXT 25 IDENTIFIED FAMILIES. THROUGH A GENEROUS GRANT FROM THE ASPEN FOUNDATION, IREME STARTED A LIVESTOCK PILOT. THEY GAVE A SHEEP TO 6 VULNERABLE FAMILIES. IN THE SUMMER, THESE SHEEP REPRODUCED AND THE FAMILIES NOW HAVE A SOURCE OF INCOME AND A WAY TO KEEP THEIR CHILDREN IN SCHOOL AND CARED FOR. THIS PROGRAM WILL HOPEFULLY CONTINUE TO SUSTAIN ITSELF AND MOVE FORWARD THROUGH GENERATIONS. WE ARE MONITORING THE PROGRESS OVER TIME SO WE CAN OFFER THE PILOT DATA TO INFORM FUTURE PROGRAMS LIKE THIS ONE. HYGIENE NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES PERSIST IN THIS AREA, BUT WE ARE FIGHTING THEM WITH EDUCATION ABOUT IMPROVED HYGIENE PRACTICES AND ACCESS TO RESOURCES FOR IMPROVED HYGIENE PRACTICES. THE SOAP-MAKING CONTINUES AT NYABIREHE IN ORDER TO KEEP A GOOD SUPPLY OF SOAP AVAILABLE FOR STUDENTS. THIS FALL, WE RECEIVED A SECOND GRANT FROM WORLD CONNECT TO EXPAND THE SOAP MAKING PROJECT TO INCLUDE TRAINING THE TEACHERS AT RWINZOVU SCHOOL IN SOAP MAKING. THEY HAVE BEEN REQUESTING THIS TRAINING FOR OVER A YEAR NOW. THIS GRANT WILL ALSO COVER TRAINING AND EQUIPMENT TO LAUNCH SOAP MAKING AT A NEW COMMUNITY CENTER BUILDING DOWN THE STREET FROM THE IREME OFFICE. THIS SPACE HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BE A HUB FOR LOCAL SOCIAL ENTERPRISE, SO IREME WILL BE TRAINING COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO MAKE SOAP AND WILL START A SMALL BUSINESS VENTURE TO CREATE JOBS AND EXPAND THE HYGIENE LEARNING INTO THE COMMUNITY. THE SOAP MAKING WILL THEN HAVE TWO BRANCHES, ONE CONTINUING TO DONATE SOAP TO THE SCHOOLS AND KEEP THE CHILDREN HEALTHY AND CLEAN. THE OTHER BRANCH WILL MAKE AND SELL SOAP IN THE LOCAL MARKETS TO MAKE AND SUSTAIN THEIR OWN BUSINESS. TRUE TO OUR KNOT FRAMEWORK, WE PAIR THINGS LIKE SOAP ACCESS WITH HEALTH EDUCATION ABOUT HYGIENE. THIS SUMMER, OUR FELLOWS AND NEW HEALTH MANAGER (SEE BELOW) DESIGNED AND IMPLEMENTED PRESENTATIONS IN THE AREA TO TEACH AND REINFORCE HEALTH EDUCATION SESSIONS SO STUDENTS REALLY UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF HYGIENE IN FIGHTING DISEASES AND ALSO HOW THEY CAN MAKE BEHAVIORAL CHANGES TO IMPROVE THEIR HEALTH THAT ARE AVAILABLE IN THEIR OWN COMMUNITY. FOR EXAMPLE, FELLOWS RAN CLASSES THROUGH THE SCHOOL HEALTH CLUB ON WATER SAFETY, NUTRITION, NTD'S, REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, DENTAL HYGIENE, PREVALENT LOCAL DISEASES AND MORE. THESE WERE ALSO REINFORCED THROUGH A PROGRAM LINKING SPORTS AND HEALTH EDUCATION. IT IS IMPORTANT IN OUR WORK THAT THE PROJECTS BE INTERTWINED AND INTEGRATED INTO THE COMMUNITY SO THEY ARE IMMEDIATELY ADOPTABLE AND CREATE REAL RESULTS. FELLOWSHIP ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING ADDITIONS TO THE MUG FAMILY THIS YEAR WAS THE LAUNCH OF THE MOVE UP GLOBAL FELLOWSHIP. FOUR STUDENTS FROM TUFTS UNIVERSITY DESIGNED PROJECTS TO IMPLEMENT IN RWANDA IN THE SUMMER OF 2023. PROJECTS INCLUDED EDUCATION ON WASH (WATER, SANITATION HYGIENE) EDUCATION, DENTAL HEALTH, ONE HEALTH EDUCATION (TEACHING ABOUT PUBLIC HEALTH IN A HOLISTIC WAY INCLUDING HUMANS, ANIMALS AND ENVIRONMENT AS A LINKED SYSTEM), PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND SPORTS INTEGRATED WITH HEALTH EDUCATION, AND OTHER LOCALLY SPECIFIC HEALTH EDUCATION TOPICS. THE FOUR FELLOWS TRAVELED TO RWANDA AND WORKED CLOSELY WITH THE CHW, THE SCHOOL TEACHERS, AND THE IREME TEAM TO IMPLEMENT STRONG INTERVENTIONS THAT ARE SUSTAINABLE AND CAN BE INTEGRATED INTO THE LOCAL COMMUNITY WITH LOCAL LEADERSHIP. THEY ALSO WORKED ON MOVE UP GLOBAL RESEARCH AND ESTABLISHED A PARTNERSHIP WITH AFRICA QUANTITATIVE SERVICES IN KIGALI, ANALYZING RESEARCH DATA AND HELPING COMPLETE OUR RESEARCH PROJECTS. THROUGH THEIR WORK, THE FELLOWS FIGURED OUT HOW WE CAN MOVE OUR HEALTH PASSPORT FORWARD AND WAYS WE CAN BEST DELIVER HEALTH EDUCATION TO MAKE SUSTAINABLE BEHAVIORAL CHANGES IN THE LOCAL COMMUNITY. BY TRAINING LOCAL TEACHERS AS HEALTH AMBASSADORS AND WRITING PRESENTATIONS AND HEALTH PAMPHLETS IN TWO LANGUAGES, THEY PROVIDED PUBLIC HEALTH MATERIALS THAT ARE ACCESSIBLE AND ADAPTABLE TO THE LOCAL POPULATION. SO FAR, THE RESPONSE HAS BEEN VERY POSITIVE AND BOTH TEACHERS AND STUDENTS ARE ASKING FOR MORE CLASSES AND INFORMATION. HEALTH MANAGER THE IREME TEAM ADDED A KEY MANAGER IN 2023. THE ADDITION OF DR. NINA EMRAKABE THIS SUMMER AS THE NEW HEALTH MANAGER FILLED A CRITICAL ROLE IN MOVING OUR HEALTH PROJECTS FORWARD. DR. NINA ARRIVED IN TIME TO WORK WITH THE TUFTS FELLOWS AND GET THE HEALTH EDUCATION PROJECTS MOVING BOTH AT NYABIREHE AND RWINZOVU SCHOOLS. SHE SERVES AS A KEY RESOURCE ON HEALTH TOPICS AND IS WORKING WITH THE PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS TO CREATE A SUSTAINABLE SCHEDULE OF HEALTH EDUCATION PRESENTATIONS IN THE SCHOOLS. SHE HAS ALSO BEEN MEETING WITH THE LOCAL HEALTH POSTS TO EXPAND RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN HEALTH PROFESSIONALS IN THE AREA SO PEOPLE HAVE STRONG HEALTH REFERRAL PATHWAYS WHEN NEEDED. TRANSPORTATION AND PROXIMITY ARE CRUCIAL CHALLENGES TO HEALTH OUTCOMES IN THIS AREA, SO WE HOPE THAT BY BUILDING BETTER COMMUNICATION BETWEEN HEALTH RESOURCES, WE CAN ALLEVIATE COME COMMON HEALTH CHALLENGES IN THE FUTURE. DR. NINA ALSO SUPERVISES THE COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS. IN NOVEMBER, IREME HIRED A SECOND CHW FOR THE RWINZOVU SCHOOL, SO WE CAN EXPAND OUR SCREENING AND HEALTH WORK TO TWO SCHOOLS. EVENTUALLY, WE HOPE TO SHOW OUR MODEL OF LINKING CHW AND TEACHER EFFORTS ALONG WITH OUR BUNDLE OF INTERVENTIONS GREATLY IMPROVES BOTH HEALTH AND ACADEMIC OUTCOMES. THEN, WE WILL TRY TO EXPAND THIS MODEL TO THE OTHER 6 SCHOOLS IN THE DISTRICT. WORLD SHOE PARTNERSHIP MOVE UP GLOBAL MOVED FORWARD THIS YEAR WITH A SPECIAL PARTNERSHIP WITH THE WORLD SHOE FUND. THIS IS AN ORGANIZATION THAT HELPS BRING SHOES TO PEOPLE IN NEED AS A PUBLIC HEALTH INTERVENTION. SHOES WILL BE AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE MOVE UP GLOBAL BUNDLE OF INTERVENTIONS, SO THIS PARTNERSHIP WILL HELP BOTH PARTIES MOVE THEIR WORK FORWARD IN RWANDA. WSF IS PROVIDING GENEROUS SUPPORT OF OUR TEAM, AND WE WILL PILOT SOME BASIC RESEARCH TO SHOW HOW MUCH PROVIDING SHOES AND HYGIENE EDUCATION TO A COMMUNITY LIKE NYABIREHE AND RWINZOVU CAN IMPROVE HEALTH AND OPPORTUNITY. WE LOOK FORWARD TO A GREAT FUTURE WITH WORLD SHOE FUND. MT. MUHABURA SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM IN 2023, THE MT. MUHABURA SCHOLARSHIP WAS LAUNCHED THROUGH THE WORK AND GENEROSITY OF ONE OF THE MUG BOARD MEMBERS, KEVIN BATT. THIS PROGRAM RAISES MONEY TO PAY FOR THE TUITION AND FEES FOR THE HIGHEST-ACHIEVING STUDENTS IN OUR TWO SCHOOLS. AS STUDENTS WORK VERY HARD TO PASS THE NATIONAL EXAMS, SOME OF THEM CANNOT AFFORD TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE OPPORTUNITIES THEY EARN THROUGH THEIR HARD WORK. THIS SCHOLARSHIP AIMS TO GET THESE STUDENTS THROUGH SECONDARY SCHOOL SO THEY CAN REACH THE OPPORTUNITY TO CHANGE THEIR LIVES. THE PROGRAM HAS A MULTI-TIERED STRUCTURE IN ORDER TO FUND BOARDING SCHOOL FEES, BUT ALSO HELP SUPPORT THE HIGHEST ACHIEVING STUDENTS WHO REMAIN IN DAY SCHOOL AS WELL. THE GOAL IS TO BREAK THE CYCLE OF POVERTY THAT DID NOT ALLOW ACCESS TO ACADEMIC PATHWAYS UP UNTIL NOW. WE HOPE THESE STUDENTS WILL GO ON TO SUCCESS AND WILL THEN GIVE BACK TO THEIR COMMUNITIES IN THE FUTURE.