A Promise

The Sun sets on Lake Tanganyika, sinking behind the mountains of the D.R.C.

The Ahadi (promise) Institute is located within the Newman Institute of Social Work; the only higher education center in the region. It is a very small institution, graduating about 16 students a year. The lovely Ahadi director, Edison, has been doing work with refugees since 1998. I will not go into great detail here about the origin of conflict that brought refugees from Burundi, Congo and Rwanda, but I will give a brief timeframe. The first camp was raised in 1972, for Burundians that fled ethnic conflict. This camp is separate from the others, and has been treated differently considering that two generations would be born inside the camp. In 2008 the Burundians were finally given a choice. Either they could become citizens, or voluntarily repatriate. The Tanzanian government naturalized about 160,000 Burundians, approximately 20,000 returned home and thousands more were resettled.
The other 9 camps followed in the wake of further conflict in Burundi, beginning in 1993, when the President died, through 1996. There were a smaller number of Rwandan refugees that arrived during the 1994 genocide, which were swiftly repatriated the next year. And, beginning in 1996, the Congolese camps were built.

It was in 1996 that the Ahadi institute was involved in initiating groups that would bring youth together, to protect, and in order to avoid delinquency. At first this was community-based, run by refugee volunteers, without solid structure in place. Then, it was decided that education should be based on the National systems of the people in mind. Thus, negotiations were made between the camps and the Ministers of Education in Congo and Burundi. They believed that National programs and pedagogy should be employed in camps in order to advance the youth and prepare them for reintegration into their countries of origin. The development of structured schools would also keep students engaged, rather than idle or exploited for labor. Proper books and exams were procured from the countries. Then teachers were identified from within the camp.

Teacher’s qualifications were assessed and then teacher training and examinations followed in order to ensure high standards. Then, a number of primary and secondary schools were built in the camps, with names like ‘Kilimanjaro Primary,’ showing all signs of conventional schools except that they were deterritorialized from their country. During exam periods representatives from the countries come and supervise, and to those who pass, a very formal certificate is bestowed on the student in order to ensure credit upon repatriation. People really value certificates here.
When students began completing secondary school the ‘Institute Superior Pedagogique (ISP)’ was started in order to occupy people and feed hungry minds. It provides higher education through distance learning. There have been many refugees who have written their dissertation from within camps, often focusing on issues that they are encounter every day – like the frequency of rape and its effects on women. I didn’t ask about the ratio of men and women in these programs, but it is my guess that most who reach the ISP level are men. The programs available focus on the socio-economic development of the region. ‘Managers, lawyers, economists, social workers, and teachers are all required to generate a well-functioning and prosperous society,’ the director emphasizes, pointing to a brochure.

This program could be reputed as ‘community-based’ as it has also established community centers in Burundi and Congo for students whose studies might be interrupted by repatriation. The degrees are launched and developed according to the needs and possibilities of the local environment and maintain focus on sustainable development and peace studies. It is my feeling that the program is highly encouraging, yet exists with insubstantial reach. Today there are only 2 camps left in Tanzania, one Congolese and one Burundian. The latter’s services, including all education programs, were discontinued by the Tanzanian government in Spring of 2009. Their ‘promise’ has been broken.