Rwanda National Police

At the roadside linking Rwezamenyo to Kimisagara separating Rwezamenyo and Gitega sectors of Nyarugenge District, we notice a group of about fifteen young men all in their mid-twenties in a beehive of woodwork related activities.

As we approach, two dressed in navy blue workshop dust coats simultaneously move quickly towards us calling ‘boss boss..!’ with hope  we are new clients, they are sternly beckoned to move back by one amongst them; we realize there is order and control.  We decide to talk to the one with authority whom we latter learn is the head of discipline, why! 

Jean Paul Bikorimana, 27, is one of the 35 members of Tuzamurane, a cooperative formed by former drugs and alcohol addicts.  

“Each person you see here was a hardcore drug and alcohol addict; many of us were violent robbers”, says Bikorimana.

His father was a drunk and his mother a teetotaler, arriving in Nyamirambo in 1994 from a rural town of Bugesera, Bikorimana was a teenager and frightened by the drinking, smoking and fighting common in the area. But he got used to the place.

He says it all began with just tasting a little of the drugs every day.

“It was through idling around with friends who were already addicted that I started abusing drugs and got addicted to them”, he talks about the start on a self-destruction journey.

Soon he had grown physically dependent on a substance

"It grew more and more over time," Bikorimana says of his addiction. "Eventually I could not stop. You get this euphoric happiness that comes over you and nothing else can beat it."

"Suddenly you're comparing everything else in the world to that feeling and nothing compares, not even authorities."

Turning point

The drug use caught up to him when he was arrested in the same area for theft. "I was messed up on drugs and was going into houses stealing anything I could get my hands on."

When he was arrested by police Bikorimana was immediately taken to Gikondo transit center and soon after moved to Iwawa Rehabilitation and Training Centre in the western Province.

Spending a year at Iwawa was probably the best thing that happened to his life.

Iwawa is a small island within Lake Kivu in Rutsiro District, Western Rwanda, it's a rehabilitation centre for young drug addicts, who get clean and learn varied vocational skills such as carpentry. Founded in 2010 to give street children the chance to forge a career off the streets, the centre has experts with extensive knowledge of handling psychological disorders.

At Iwawa, six first months are dedicated to rehabilitation while the second phase of six months for vocational training.

“The arrest by Police kicked off a major transformation and turned my life around” Bikorimana says.

At Iwawa the recovery journey was not smooth. He says it was punctuated with many triggers into relapse but thanks to the trained personnel they were able to fully recover.

“We were warned that discipline was key to continue with the programmes so I decided to quite, I feared it would cost mean opportunity to live a better live” he adds.

When he was back, he was humbled and relegated to a humble life not in drinking or smoking cannabis.

After graduating from the program, Bikorimana and three other colleagues went back to Rwezamenyo, found and empty space to put into practice what they had learned at the rehabilitation facility.

“We were three with only a few carpentry tools and about Rwf10, 000 collectively when we began; we brought other rehabilitated addicts and others who were on streets, now we’re  35 members”, he narrates.

Today their carpentry business is worth over Rwf15 million thanks to Government financial support.

Through Business Development Fund (BDF) they got a business guarantee fund of Rwf11 million to boost their business.

The Rwezamenyo Sector Executive Secretary Stella Mbabazi notes that local initiatives to facilitate youngsters have bore fruits in the sector and prides herself in members of Tuzamurane.

Senior Supt. Emmanuel Hitayezu, the City of Kigali Police spokesperson, says: "We have witnessed how a profound increase in the number of former street kids engage in self-help project ….., they are our good stakeholders in stopping  crime.”

Future plans

Tuzamurane members say they want to expand their business to benefit other youngsters but are constrained with resources.

They plan to introduce tailoring service to admit girls who constantly pester them to join the group.

Currently they are paying house rent to five of their new colleagues and wages to each of them provided they demonstrate commitment to dropping drug abuse.

They also wish to establish a programme that reaches out to recovering addicts to give them support such as counseling. This they do by imploring others by telling them what ills drugs can lead to.

“We know that resources are so precious, the only answer to that is to double down and work even harder at Iwawa, I learnt how I can create my own job and contribute to the country’s development as well as sharing what I know with my fellows.”

“They turned our mess into skills which have become our greatest gift and source of livelihood.  We wish to help more people,” says Bikorimana.

As we conclude, Bikorimana credits Government for changing their life and is passionate about being a former addict that is helping other addicts.

The government, last year, launched an extensive nationwide campaign against drugs.

The campaign combine aspects of prevention and killing the local market, strengthening partnership against drug dealers, identifying and rehabilitating addicts.

Status of drugs

Statistics indicate that 18 percent of all the 3941 cases recorded last year were related to drugs. The report further shows that a total of 4149 people were arrested in drug related crimes in the same period, with over 71 percent of them aged between 18 and 35 years.

At least 48 drug dealers arrested last year were aged below 18 years, according to the report.

In the last five years, Police recorded 18,383 cases related to narcotic drugs.

Rehabilitation efforts

According to Aimee Bosenibamwe, the Director General of National Rehabilitation Service (NRS), since 2012, over 15.000 youth have so far been rehabilitated from the three government facilities of Iwawa, Gitagata and Nyamagabe.

He says the NRS has active partnerships with about 24 non-state actors who give private rehabilitation services to which government also offers budget support.

Mr. Bosenibamwe says NRS is now working on plans to expand the capacity of existing rehabs. 

“Iwawa will be expanded from the current 3, 000 capacity to about 10, 000, while Gitagata will be reserved for less than 18 years boys and girls” he adds.

He explains that apart from offering social-economic rehabilitation the centers looks at integrated preventive approaches to stopping further spread of drug abuse.

“The long term and sustainable solution is to eliminate all causes that may lead to child instability from the home, in schools and community” he says.

He says this is possible with the involvement of the community especially at household levels where causes emanate from.

He mentioned domestic violence, child labor and child harassment, inherent post-conflict situations and peer influence are key drivers to addiction; “peer pressure has led the youth into regrettable circumstances.”

To this end he urges youth to be aware of whom they connect with on all social media platforms and other socials interactions.