More Than Soap: A Hygiene Center Bringing Health and Opportunity to Bukamba

Indigenous ethnic groups in Rwanda, including the Batwa, face significant barriers to health and economic well-being. Traditionally living in the forests of central Africa, the Batwa were evicted in the 1970s to protect endangered gorillas and were relocated to government-designated land. Due to this recent transition and limited income to build sanitation infrastructure, many Batwa communities lack basic sanitation. In Rwanda, only 64% of people have access to sanitation services, and these numbers are even lower in Batwa villages like Bukamba.

Like many in Bukamba, Francoise learned to wash clothes using solanum mammasun, a locally available tropical fruit. However, without disinfectant soap, hygiene-related infections and diseases were widespread.

Francoise participated in a soap-making training at Bukamba’s newly built Hygiene Center. Every weekend, she and her cooperative members gather to produce bars of soap for bathing and liquid soap for washing. Now, their cooperative sells bars of soap for 1,400 RWF (about $1) and 5-liter jugs for 3,000 RWF ($2.30). The income not only supports members financially but also helps expand hygiene programs.

“I am very happy because I know how to make liquid and bar soaps. Before, I used to clean using solanum mammasun, but today I use a good soap. Every Saturday and Sunday, we make liquid and bar soaps,” shares Francoise.

One Day’s Wages partnered with the African Initiative for Mankind Progress Organization (AIMPO), a nonprofit founded by and for the Batwa community, to reduce the spread of disease through improved hygiene and sanitation. Through this partnership, a brand-new Community Hygiene Center was constructed in Bukamba Village, Gicumbi District. The center serves as a hub for hygiene education, demonstrations of low-cost latrines and handwashing facilities, and soap production. Today, those trained in soap-making are running a cooperative, earning income, and contributing to a healthier future for their community.