Expect your Rafiki Exchange purchase to ship
within one week of placing your order.

Genocide Survivors


Widowhood in Rwanda

The close of the Rwandan Genocide in 1994 ended a 100-day massacre of Tutsi and Hutu men and women, leaving over 800,000 dead. Studies have revealed that one in ten Rwandans died during the genocide.

With few male survivors, Rwanda became a nation comprised of more women than men. The scars of trauma these women carry are tragic and inspiring. Surviving unimaginable horrors, they witnessed their husbands, children, and friends brutally killed and their homes burned to the ground.

During the genocide, women were raped while friends were forced to stand by defenselessly as their enemies condoned and applauded the violence.
One widow says female survivors were left to “die of sadness.”


Healing Through Weaving

Following the genocide, widows were left to create a new life for themselves. With their husbands dead, the widows from the warring Tutsi and Hutu tribes gathered together to make peace.
By weaving baskets together, the widows found healing through a
centuries-old piece of Rwandan culture—basket weaving.

Now, more than 25 years post-genocide, Rwandan widows continue to live in extreme poverty; many subsist on $1.25 or less a day to feed and shelter themselves and their children.
However, these women are slowly rebuilding
their lives, homes, and nation.

Although Rwandan women have experienced what some would call "a fate worse than death,"
​the Rafiki Foundation continues to help them restore their lives through our Widows Program and to present them with the life-giving Word of God through daily Bible study. Supporting these widows and their families is our privilege and passion.


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Small Rwandan Basket

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Large Rwandan Basket

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Medium Rwandan Basket

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Basket with Lid

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Woven Ornament

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Christmas Trees

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Storage Basket

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Woven Snowman Ornaments

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Storage Hamper

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Small Natural Rwandan Basket

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Rwandan Storage Basket

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Rwandan Christmas Basket

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Colorful Oval Trays

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Rwandan Large Turtle Basket

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Serving Platter

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Kigali Vase

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Peace Basket

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Basket with Lids with Pointed Top

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Tall Nyanza Vase

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Table Runner with Fringe

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Rwandan Medium Turtle Basket

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Rwandan Basket

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Rwamagana Basket

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Color Block Laundry Hamper

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Tablecloth with Fringe

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Serving Baskets

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Rwanda Trivets

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Round Flat Tray

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Expect your Rafiki Exchange purchase to ship within one week of placing your order.
The USPS is relying on ground transport, you may experience longer shipping times.