Three new classrooms were last week inaugurated after they were built through an initiative dubbed One Brick at a Time, which was launched by the Rwandan diaspora in Canada and their friends, through an association called Inzira y’Urumuri/Le Chemain de la Lumière (IU/CL).

The classrooms were built for St-Abel Primary School in Kavumu, located in Ruhango District through a fundraising drive launched in January this year and will benefit students in grades one, two, and three.

"We are so proud and happy with the realization of this second step, following the construction of the kindergarten classrooms in the village of Kavumu in 2016," said Marie Ntaganda, the president and co-founder of the association.

She added that the campaign allowed them to raise the funds that were added to donations from previous years and made the construction of these new classrooms possible.

In collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the Ruhango District in among other partners, IU/CL is already taking steps to build more classrooms for students in Grade 4 to Grade 6 as their short-term goal, according to a statement.

The inauguration coincided with the beginning of the school year in Rwanda and over 120 additional students are currently attending the school.

"We would like to thank our sponsors, without whom the fundraising and the addition of 3 classrooms would not have been possible: Collège Boréal, Conseil scolaire catholique Nouvelon, Conseil scolaire public du Grand Nord de l'Ontario, and OSSTF - Unit 57", says Matthias Pawoumodon Takouda, the treasurer of the organisation.

According to Adolphine Mukamanzi, the Communications Officer of IU/CL, their plan is to raise more funds as soon as possible, so that Grade 3 students are able to continue on to Grade 4.

She added that in order to reach that goal, they invite people to continue to donate and support their fundraising activities.

The mission of IU/CL is to contribute to the reduction of poverty, advancement of education and promotion of health among less fortunate communities in Canada and around the world, according to a statement.