Supporting Rwandan communities in their journey towards healing, forgiveness, reconciliation, and sustainable development.

CARSA is a non-profit organization founded to contribute to the restoration and development of the nation of Rwanda. Since its creation in 2002, CARSA has transformed the lives of many communities through trauma healing and reconciliation workshops, peace education, trainings in children’s ministry and community empowerment.


In 1994, the genocide against the Tutsi happened in Rwanda. Afterwards, the convicted offenders were imprisoned. Some have been released to return to their families. It has not been easy for the families of survivors and their offenders to reconcile and live in harmony. This difficult reality is compounded by the genocide’s negative effects on the socio-economic statuses of the survivors, offenders and their direct families hardly socialize. CARSA works with genocide survivors and their direct offenders, accompanying them on their journeys of forgiveness, reconciliation, and holistic development.

Trauma Recovery and Reconciliation

The Trauma Recovery and Reconciliation Program of CARSA marks the beginning of CARSA’s different activities. Within this program, CARSA uses several workshops to help genocide survivors, offenders, and others suffering from the trauma of genocide to find healing through forgiveness and reconciliation.

Economic development

CARSA aims to seeing the Reconciliation Cell Groups(RCGs) move from a poverty mindset to a self-developing mindset. We want to see them move from communities torn by hatred and suspicions to a community working together in love and mutual trust and help. As they move from poverty to income-generating activities. Communities where unity in diversity is lived

A peaceful society is one where there is food security and the ability to withstand disasters. That's precisely why we engage in supporting farmers Rwanda's largest workforce in building a nation that is both food-secure and peaceful.

So, we aim to contribute to the exponential growth of food production in Rwanda. To make this vision a reality, we adopted a Community Peace Farm Program to equip smallholder farmers with all the techniques that are needed to practice climate-smart agriculture.

There can be no sustainable peace without food security!

Youth Empowerment

As Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.”

Youth Empowerment exists to help release young people and families from poverty and empower individuals to learn through the provision of education and essential life-skills training. CARSA is committed to providing sustainable solutions to the social problems stemming from poverty. Self-development is crucial to achieving this. By giving people training, skills, and trades, we are giving them the power to take control and change their lives forever.

Peacebuilding

How does a generation collectively remember a genocide that they have not directly experienced and safeguard against its reoccurrence?

As Gandhi said, if we are to reach peace, we have to begin by educating children. This is to say that educating children about peace is one of the key components of a sustainable peacebuilding process.

UBWUNGO Peace and Reconciliation Center

The UPRC aspires to become the first holistic place for Rwandans to share their positive stories of reconciliation with the 1994 genocide. UPRC is a long-term heart project from CARSA Rwanda.

By building a future-oriented campus outside of Kigali, Rwanda, We will provide visitors with examples of reconciliation after genocide and mass killings in order to increase awareness and understanding in post-conflict societies.


UBWUNGO NEWSLETTER 1st EDITION

Welcome to our 1st Christian Action for Reconciliation and Social Assistance’s (CARSA) newsletter, UBWUNGO (Rwanda word that describes the African tradition of healing and mending together corporeal parts that are broken), highlighting stories, achievements, and activities conducted with our partners at national and grassroots levels. Together, we have significantly contributed to empowering young people, building relationships, and developing character to enable them to be sources and agents of the holistic transformation of the nation. We bring together genocide survivors and perpetrators and assist them with opportunities for welfare in various peace-building initiatives.

Impact by Numbers

  • +2,300 RCGs MEMBERS

    So far, over 2,300 genocide survivors and former perpetrators have actively participated in CARSA’s Reconciliation Cell Groups (RCGs) to enhance their journey of forgiveness, unity, and social welfare.

  • 390 COWS DISTRIBUTED

    Through the Cow for Peace project, CARSA has distributed 390 cows to underprivileged genocide survivors’ households.

    It has become a very powerful model of peace and reconciliation between Genocide survivors and perpetrators.

  • 250 CALVES also distributed

    So far, 250 grown-up calves have been given to former perpetrators by their genocide survivors as a sign of forgiveness.

  • 780 HOUSEHOLDS

    Over 780 underprivileged families of genocide survivors and perpetrators from the Muhanga and Kamonyi districts have positively benefited from the COW for Peace Project.

Could you forgive the person who killed your spouse? She did.