DAFI scholarship nurtures dreams of refugee students in Rwanda

On a rainy Monday afternoon, Samuel Kwihangana, a Congolese refugee, is getting ready for his first exam at the University of Lay Adventists of Kigali (UNILAK) – Nyanza campus located in southern Rwanda – where he’s pursuing a degree in Law.

The 24-year-old refugee student is using his mobile phone to revise notes as he waits to get a computer installed with special software that can read out the text for him to listen. Samuel has a visual impairment but that has not hindered his learning, nor prevented him from feeling confident about his upcoming law exam.

“I am ready for it and curious about how the results will be. I hope they will be good,” Samuel says.

Samuel, who started university barely a month ago, is very enthusiastic about his new life and hopes to use his education to turn his aspirations into reality.  His studies were made possible thanks to UNHCR’s DAFI scholarship program—an initiative largely funded by Germany - which supports refugees in pursuing higher education in their first country of asylum.

“For me, DAFI means a reason to continue studies,” he says, adding that it was almost impossible to access higher education without this programme. Samuel completed his secondary education in 2021 but for the last two years encountered difficulties while searching for scholarship opportunities.

“During those two years, it was not easy. I struggled with difficult life [in the camp]. I praise my Lord for making that possible,” he says.

Last September, however, he heard an announcement in Kigeme refugee camp – where his family lives – about DAFI scholarship and successfully applied for it.

This year, UNHCR has supported 40 new refugee students in Rwanda, including Samuel, to start higher education through the DAFI scholarship programme. In total, 186 refugees are currently attending both public and private higher learning institutions across Rwanda thanks to the programme.

Born with a visual impairment, Samuel had always faced challenges from the start. He explains, for instance, how he couldn't start to school when he was supposed to, due to his disability and that his family had a hard time finding a school that could help him in DR Congo because of his vision problem. Things got even tougher in 2012 when fighting broke out back home, and his family had to escape to Rwanda.

Despite the difficulties, Samuel has always been eager to keep learning. When he resumed his studies in primary five at the camp, he had to do things a bit differently for exams and assignments because there were no special tools for students like him.

He says that even though he could not use a pen to write, he courageously went back to school in the camp and tried to explain his case.

“Most people didn’t understand how a student with no ability to write could attend. It was not easy for me,” he narrates. “I studied the entire year orally, and my abilities were exposed, even though I used oral approaches by being interviewed during tests, exams, some assignments, or group work.”

Luckily, the following year, Samuel was supported by UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to attend HVP Gatagara in Rwamagana, a specialized school for children with visual impairments. He completed primary education and secondary education there where he specialized in literature of English, Kiswahili, and Kinyarwanda.

“At that school, it wasn't difficult because students were like me. We had same challenges and received special facilities by using braille writing. They tried to provide a notion of ICT and how individuals with visual impairments can utilize it," he says.

Now that he has the chance to pursue university studies, Samuel’s aspirations extend beyond personal success: he envisions a future where his law degree will serve as a catalyst for positive change. He dreams of advocating for young people facing challenges similar to his own, tirelessly echoing the mantra, “disability is not inability; disability is not the end of possibility.”

In his own words, “giving possible opportunities to all,” including refugees with special needs like himself, is key to unlocking their potential.