Emmanuel Nzabaregerimana

Emmanuel Nzabaregerimana was a toddler during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis. He was picked from the dead in the former Gikongoro prefecture Murambi in the midst of the tragedy where thousands of innocent people, including his parents, were gruesomely murdered. Back in 1999, a poor old woman brought him to SOS Children’s Village Gikongoro (Nyamagabe). “After the genocide, I was picked by an old woman who took care of me until I joined SOS Children’s Villages Rwanda. As her living conditions were worsening, she decided to take me to the SOS Children’s Village Gikongoro believing they would take better care of me than she was able to,” explained the 25-year-old young man. Nzabaregerimana vividly remember the care of aunt Winifride Mwubahamana, a SOS mother who took care of him and other children. He considers her as a real parent and mother. He does not remember his biological parents as he was too young when they passed away. He even does not know where he comes from and his age was estimated when he joined SOS Children’s Village Gikongoro. “Although I was mature enough to start primary school, I started in nursery 2. It was a good decision from my educators as it helped me to start a smooth education journey,” notes Nzabaregerimana. He completed his primary with ease and went to College Adventiste de Gitwe for both Ordinary and Advanced level and graduated with a secondary school certificate in Computer Sciences.
Nzabaregerimana got a scholarship from SOS Children’s Villages Rwanda and joined the University of Rwanda Huye Campus where he enrolled in Business Information Technology (BIT). In college he started pondering about what he could do to become a change maker in the society. “One day, I met a foreigner who encouraged me to think big and create my own business instead of waiting for someone to employ me. When I told him that I had no financial capital, he responded that I only need a good idea to become self-employed,” he said. He then encouraged three class mates to create an IT company with him that could provide solutions to the challenges the country was facing. In 2016, they created Information Data Analysis (IDA) Technology Ltd to come up with innovative IT solutions and platforms. The company registered legally in April 2017. Nzabaregerimana became the Head of the company. The journey towards software development
plication they developed. The application currently has over 200 housemaids registered in its database and is available both in a mobile and USSD format. Housemaids register themselves to seek for jobs and employers use the application to hire them. ‘Girls in code’ created in 2017 is a five-month training in coding for any interested girl who completed a secondary degree and has access to a computer. As of now, 66 girls are registered in the training and six already successfully graduated. Another is the School Management System which facilitates online access to academic reports, parent’s notifications, registration, and management. The software was sold to SOS Children’s Village Gikongoro school and to additional five schools. The church Management Information System (MIS) is used already by some churches such as Presbyterian Churches (EPR Rwanda) and currently tested by the Zion Temple and ADEPR. The company most recently developed an Information Management System for Skol and also provides back up SMS services for ceremonies. Nzabaregerimana estimates his turnover in 2020 at Rwf 5 million with a plan to double the coming year.

Personal achievement “I earn at least Rwf 500,000 each month, most of the time even more depending on the business. Last year, I renovated my house in Nyamagabe district and invested in animal husbandry, I rear over 20 pigs and five goats. I know that I already achieved a lot however my ambitions go far beyond what I have achieved today”, explained Nzabaregerimana. Future plans Nzabaregerimana’s vision for his company is to become the leading IT development service provider in country and the region. He forecasts the ‘Girls in Code Project’ to be expanded to the East African Community countries in the next few months. Currently, the company is engaging with officials in Zambia to start business. Their biggest challenge however, he said, is that Rwandans don’t trust local software services. “They prefer to buy from other countries like South Africa and India but we are determined to prove that our services are worthwhile,” he said. Another challenge is that the company still lacks financial capacity to expand broadly their activities but he hopes all will go well as time goes by. Emmanuel’s thoughts about SOS Children’s Villages Rwanda It is not easy to raise a child. Nzabaregerimana believes that his life would have been different if he hadn’t been supported by SOS Children’s Villages Rwanda. “I am grateful for all SOS Children’s Villages Rwanda has done for me, it is not easy to raise a child and they gave all they had to make me who I am today,” he said. “Without SOS Children’s Villages Rwanda, my life would be different, maybe I would have become a street child or a poor person who wouldn’t even be able to feed himself,” Nzabaregerimana explained. He said that SOS Children’s Villages Rwanda instilled in him a strong desire to help others especially those who are vulnerable. “Even today, I can feel how vulnerable children are, I do my best to support them, be it psychologically or financially. For instance, I pay school fees for one child who is in secondary school and make sure he gets everything like his peers,” he concluded.