For the love of Burundi

‘For The Love of Burundi’ is an association of young and inspired Burundians, which promotes behavioral change through youth and sends a clear message: do what you can with what you have, right where you are.-By Joanna Nganda

Erica Gateka (in the middle) with her team.©Iwacu

Erica Gateka, 21 years old Burundian lady, is the Founder of ‘For the Love of Burundi’. This student in Accounting was inspired by the story of a 23 years old Rwandan millionaire. “His story is the perfect example of extra efforts being rewarded. Dominique Ntirushwa worked in the customer care services, and unlike his boss and coworkers, he decided to work extra hours and provide real help to customers. He ended up having an award and a lot of money that he chose to reinvest in the same company,” explains Erica. According to her, we are all able to make a change to better Burundi: “it starts with small things. For instance, for a corruption-free country, we have to start at school by stopping cheating. For a clean city, we have to stop throwing trash in the streets.” When Erica came back home after 18 years in Zambia, she had a vision: to make sure that youth’s present behavior is having a positive impact on Burundi’s future. “People always envision a big fire. Like when you hear people say “when I’ll be rich, I’ll help street children!” but it doesn’t have to be that way…Do what you can now! Instead of a big fire, see a spark. Every fire starts with a spark, and based on these little sparks everywhere, a fire will eventually come to life”, states Erica Gateka.
She shares that funds and resources are not easy to come by but she does not take it as an excuse. Currently, she and her partners are driving campus-based surveys to determine what young Burundians are waiting for to take actions, “we found out that most students really lack a vision. Dream and passion are missing. They follow paths parents chose for them and do what family expects them to do”.
Erica Gateka and her partners also opened a Facebook page (‘Just Love Burundi’) to raise awareness and inspire young people with real-life stories. During the course of this year, a Creative Fair will be organized to gather young people from all over Burundi and different backgrounds to brainstorm and share great ideas. “Young people should not only see problems but also be proactive and find solutions. We are the future of this country, and change starts with us.” Erica concludes.
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