When a fire swept through Musanze Modern Market on October 10, 2026, seven women traders from ALARM Rwanda’s Women’s Leadership and Transformation Initiative (WLTI) graduates’ group lost their merchandise, equipment, and sources of income. For women who depended on their small businesses to feed their families and pay for their children’s education, the loss threatened more than their livelihoods—it put their families’ stability at risk.
Through the generous support of Rise Up Women International, ALARM Rwanda provided emergency assistance and business restart support to help the affected women begin rebuilding their lives.
Helping Women Start Again
The support was designed to address both immediate household needs and the longer journey toward economic recovery.
A total of 28 members of the Extending the Kingdom of God WLTI graduate-led community transformation group received food assistance, including rice, maize flour, and beans. This helped ease the immediate pressure on families as the affected women worked to restore their businesses.
Seven women whose businesses were destroyed received targeted restart support suited to their respective trades. Two women in tailoring received sewing machines and fabric materials, while a woman who sold mobile phones received ten phones to help restart her business. Three women involved in bag-making received materials to resume production.
This practical assistance gave the women a starting point for rebuilding their businesses, restoring their income, and regaining their financial independence.
Restoring Hope and the Ability to Provide
For NYIRAMPETA Speciose, the fire destroyed two sewing machines and the fabrics she depended on for her tailoring business. Watching her livelihood disappear left her feeling helpless, with no clear way to begin again.
Reflecting on the support she received, she described it as a form of resurrection after a period when she felt she had lost everything.
With assistance from Rise Up Women International and ALARM Rwanda, she was able to acquire a new sewing machine and fabrics, including ibitenge, and prepare to reopen her business.
The support has renewed her hope of providing for her children and rebuilding the livelihood she worked hard to establish.
For NYIRANTIBIRINGIRWA Felicite, the days following the fire brought the painful reality of having children and grandchildren depending on her while she struggled to put food on the table.
The food assistance helped address her family’s immediate needs, while the business restart support gave her renewed hope of earning an income again. She plans to resume making baskets and selling them to rebuild her financial stability.
Her story reflects the importance of timely assistance that responds not only to the loss of business assets but also to the urgent needs of families who depend on those businesses.
Beyond Emergency Relief: Building Resilient Livelihoods
The intervention demonstrates how targeted support can help women move from crisis toward recovery. By combining food assistance with business restart resources, the initiative addressed immediate hardship while creating opportunities for longer-term economic recovery.
As the women resume trading and production, their businesses can once again become sources of income for food, education, healthcare, and other household needs.
However, recovery remains a process. The losses suffered by the women exceeded the resources available, and some still require additional assistance to fully restore their businesses. Fluctuating market prices have also affected the purchasing power of the support provided.
Continued encouragement and follow-up will be important in helping the women sustain their businesses and regain the financial security they had before the fire.
A Partnership That Makes Recovery Possible
ALARM Rwanda extends its heartfelt appreciation to Rise Up Women International for responding to the needs of the affected women with timely, practical support.
This partnership has helped women who feared they might never recover begin taking steps toward rebuilding their livelihoods and supporting their families once again.
At ALARM, community transformation includes walking alongside people through difficult seasons, equipping them to overcome challenges, and helping them build more secure futures.
When women are given the opportunity to start again, the impact reaches far beyond their businesses—it strengthens families, restores dignity, and builds hope for entire communities.
