Despite conflict and chaos that often dominates communities in Burundi, Salesian missionaries focus on their mission of providing an education and job skills to youth. At the Salesian Don Bosco Vocational Training Center Gatenga, in the city of Ruyigi in eastern Burundi, students are learning the craft of wood making. The wood making program is part of local Salesian missionaries’ efforts to provide youth an education and trade skill training as well as valuable work experience in an effort to increase future employment opportunities.

Salesian missionaries also teach at the Salesian vocational training center in Buterere, a suburb of the capital Bujumbura. In northern areas of the country, classes continue to operate as usual in institutions like the Don Bosco School in Ngozi, a large Salesian boarding school.

Bridging the gap between school curriculum and the practical skills needed to succeed in the labor market, all the programs offered at Salesian vocational training centers allow students to put the skills they have learned in the classroom into practice under the guidance of qualified workers and supervisors. Through this work in the field, students learn new techniques and gain a hands-on application of classroom studies.

Salesian missionaries in Rukago inaugurated a new building for the Maison Cana orphanage. The orphanage is managed by the Daughters of Mary – Our Lady of Cana and was founded in 1994 by Salesian Father Vital Minani, who today is the vicar of the Mary Mother of God house in Rukago.

The building is a large two-story structure. The work began in 2012 with the ground floor and continued in various stages based on the availability of funds from various benefactors, mainly from the Salesian Congregation. The initial build of the first floor was completed thanks to the donation from the Formons une Famille (Let’s Form a Family) Foundation in Quebec, Canada.

Launched in January 2017 by the Spanish Salesian-run organization, Don Bosco Solidarity, the “Improving the Opportunities for Women in Rukago” project has been making an impact on women in the rural Rukago community of Burundi. The project was implemented at the Don Bosco Vocational Training Center of Buterere to help women gain the skills needed to find and retain employment. It was launched in direct response to the high incidence of sexual violence, the stigma of HIV and the high maternal mortality rate faced by women in Burundi.

To date, more than 40 young women have received quality training in the hotel and restaurant employment sectors. In addition, an employment office was created to assist students with résumés, interviewing and connecting with employers who are hiring. The project offers courses in cooking and hotel management as well as workshops that help educate the community about gender equality and the benefits of quality employment for women.

Students and staff at the Salesian Vocational Training Center in Rukago have access to better nutrition thanks to Salesian Missions donors. Recent funding was provided to build a new kitchen at the center where lunches can be prepared. Prior to the donation, the daily lunches offered each student were prepared in an inadequate and unsanitary kitchen.

Salesian missionaries in the area are working to improve opportunities for vocational and technical skills training for youth so they are better able to find and retain stable employment. More than 230 students attend the vocational training center taking courses in mechanics, carpentry, welding and construction. In addition to their studies, they dedicate time to traditional activities such as catechism and sports.

Children are some of the most severely affected by the rampant poverty in Burundi. Fifty-three percent of children under the age of 5 suffer from growth stunting caused by inadequate food, low-quality diet, poor infant feeding practices, poor household management of childhood diseases and the general decline of the country’s health system.

More than 1,600 students attending Don Bosco high schools in Ngozi and Buterere had access to better nutrition during the second half of 2023 thanks to a partnership between Salesian Missions and Rise Against Hunger, an international humanitarian organization growing a global movement to end hunger. One of the recipient schools, Don Bosco High School in Ngozi, has 1,088 students, including 778 boys and 310 girls. Since its foundation, the school has faced food shortages due to a lack of funding. The available land is not enough to produce a sufficient quantity of food to feed the 650 students in the boarding school.

The Salesian Parish in Rukago has access to hand-washing stations thanks to funding from Salesian Missions. This project, which benefited 65,000 people in the parish and local community, provided hand-washing stations in eight churches, 15 schools and the Don Bosco Oratory.

“Installing hand-washing stations in front of churches, offices, schools and playgrounds is an effective means of fighting the coronavirus pandemic while giving the local population the hope of living,” said Father Raphaël Katanga, economer of the Salesian Community in Rukago. “With the funding, we have also supported some vulnerable families from a local indigenous group, who were at risk of facing food shortage due to the limited circulation of goods and people.”