By Isma Kwame Nkurunziza
Miss Rwanda 2020 Naome Nishimwe is in the southern province district of Nyaruguru, where she will spend seven days meeting and interacting with teenage mothers.
The stunning beauty queen, working with a Swiss NGO and local authorities, seeks to use her fame to fight teenage pregnancy and depression and at the same time economically empowering teenage mothers.
Nyaruguru district has the highest number of teenage mothers in Rwanda according to authorities.
Depression is a common problem in Rwanda, where over 800,000 people died during the 1994 genocide.
She told the New Times that she will be meeting over 500 girls in the district.
“I am here in Nyaruguru for a week. I will be talking to girls dealing with depression in the district because there is a high number of teenagers getting pregnant in the district and also dealing with depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts,” Nishimwe said.
Speaking on behalf of MABAWA Swiss, Lėon Gashagaza, said that the NGO partnered with Miss Rwanda 2020 for the Nyaruguru project because the district has the highest number of teenage pregnancies in the entire country.
He added that; “Many girls are giving birth at home which forces them to drop out of school and their lives are permanently affected.”
The NGO will also support small scale income generating projects which will be submitted by teenage mothers and also work with the district authorities to upgrade some health facilities.
