Diris: Education unlocked my power, now I’m as fearless as a lion!

7 minute read

CAMFED invested in my education, now I mentor others in return

Before meeting CAMFED, there was a moment at home where we did not have food to eat and no money for food, no help from anyone.

My parents died when I was young and my siblings and I had to fend for ourselves, often relying on neighbors for food. Each one of us would stay at a different house waiting for lunch time, eating there and then coming back home where we would make a plan of how to get our meals the next day.

My younger brothers didn’t have the support to pass their Form 2 exams and dropped out of school, resorting to a life asking for money on the streets instead. I could see that this was very hard and risky, and I realized that the only way to change my life was to study hard, no matter the challenges I was facing.

I visited various neighbours, orphanage centers, church leaders and teachers to ask for contributions to my bus fare and other school costs. Even with their support I struggled, but I knew that education would be my path to change my life and help others.

The intense financial pressure I was under affected my academic performance and I failed some of my secondary school leaving exams. I managed to re-take them by working as a domestic helper to keep a roof over my head, and I never gave up on my dream of going to university.

That dream became a reality when I managed to secure a place at the University of Dar es Salaam to study Political Science and Public Administration, even though I lacked funding. At the university, the Dean of Students put me in touch with CAMFED, and I was among 10 students who secured a full scholarship. When I received this support I felt so confident — like my life had started again!

From that moment I knew I wanted to be a leader and support people who are in need. Because I had already faced so many difficult challenges, I felt I would know how to deal with issues effectively and sensitively.

After my graduation in 2011, I joined the CAMFED Association — the network of women leaders educated with CAMFED support — and I returned home to my community. My CAMFED sisters and I would take part in philanthropic activities together, while I continued looking for job opportunities. 

Two years later, I became a CAMFED Core Trainer in Kilosa and Gairo Districts, during a period when CAMFED was expanding the Association’s leadership into new areas. As a Core Trainer, I worked with Learner Guides — young women supported by CAMFED, who mentor and support vulnerable children in school, in return for entrepreneurship training and access to grants or interest-free business loans. 

Left: Working to support two Learner Guides in my role as Program Officer in 2021. Right: Holding up a copy of My Better World, the life skills and wellbeing workbook, at a Day of the African Child commemoration event in Rorya District, 2020. (Credit: CAMFED)

I’m very passionate about the work of CAMFED’s Learner Guides, as they fill a gap that students, particularly the most vulnerable, can experience during secondary education. Teachers are busy preparing their lesson plans, examinations, and mark schemes, but the students need support apart from that. They need psychological support, they need counseling, they need emotional support. Learner Guides are the ones who come to assist the teachers and fill that gap.

I also worked closely with the Community Development Committee — comprising district officials, school staff, parents, teachers, and former students — to support young women’s leadership. I would connect CAMFED Association members with technical business support and help them access training in practical skills like soap making. 

One project I am proud of is collaborating with the CAMFED Association district committee to encourage the formation of Parent Support Groups. These are local moms and dads who pool their resources to support vulnerable children in school. They run school meal programs, provide emotional support and encouragement, and establish profit-making ventures to buy school supplies. The school meals are particularly important when students have exams, as a limited diet can really affect exam performance. By 2016, with my efforts, our district had established 12 new Parent Support Groups! 

I’ve had many opportunities to participate in events through CAMFED. Here I am (second from right) with fellow CAMFED Association members Abia (far left) and Stumai (far right), with CAMFED CEO Angeline Murimirwa (second from left) at the ‘Let Girls Learn’ event Tanzania, 2016. (Credit: CAMFED)

In 2017, I became the CAMFED District Coordinator for Chalinze, Kibaha, and Bagamoyo, before joining CAMFED Tanzania’s national office in 2020 as Regional Program Officer. In this role, I worked with stakeholders across five districts in the wider Dar es Salaam region—Kigamboni, Ubungo, Kinondoni, Temeke, and Ilala Municipal councils. I worked with CAMFED Association members to help them connect, collaborate, and extend financial and social support to more vulnerable children.

During school closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, I worked with colleagues and district committees to support students’ learning and wellbeing through radio and TV sessions on national radio stations, Capital Radio and Radio One.

I appeared alongside the government’s social welfare officer from Ilala Municipal on local and national radio to discuss child protection, COVID-19 safety measures, and run learning sessions using CAMFED’s My Better World, a life skills and wellbeing program. (Credit: CAMFED)

I really enjoyed taking part in Day of the African Child commemorations in Dar es Salaam, 2022. Here I am with two CAMFED Learner Guides, Anna (left) and Lucy (rear) at the event. (Credit: CAMFED)

Later in 2020, I was promoted to Senior Program Officer, where now I oversee the work of several CAMFED District Program Coordinators. In this role, I work closely with CAMFED Tanzania’s Program Managers, National Director, Core Trainers, and Learner Guides, as well as community, district, and national stakeholders, to integrate CAMFED’s Learner Guide program into the national school system, and improve learning outcomes for thousands more children. 

My regular workday looks marvelous as there is a lot of variety.  I follow up on bursary support packages for CAMFED supported students, I check-in with CAMFED Association members on their progress through vocational or tertiary education, and I work closely with my colleagues in CAMFED Tanzania to ensure we achieve our collective goals. I feel so motivated when I see CAMFED graduates as successful business women, graduating from universities, progressing in their chosen careers and becoming role models in the community. 

Here I am speaking at the CAMFED Association Summit in Bagamoyo, Tanzania in 2023. (Credit: Kumi Media)

Here I am with Anna Sawaki, Director of Programs and Partnerships, Tanzania, at the CAMFED Association Summit in December 2023. (Credit: CAMFED)

Back when I was at school, there were no Learner Guides, no mentors, or CAMFED Association sisters around who could say to me “Oh Diris, you finished primary school, now you are going to secondary school. There are many challenges but I am here to support you.” That’s why I am so passionate about mentoring my younger sisters. 

One young woman I have mentored is Rehema, a CAMFED graduate and Learner Guide from Kilosa District.  When I met her she was lacking in confidence to start a business, and was struggling to support herself and her Grandmother who relied on her.  

I encouraged her to start one small business selling cassava and another selling rice. This helped kickstart her passion for entrepreneurship, and she ventured into paddy cultivation as well as selling the processed rice. Her business is succeeding and she has managed to buy the house that she was living in with her Grandmother. I’m so proud of her and I pray for more successes!

When I look back, I can see how much my life has changed. I am financially independent, able to support myself and my family. Back in 2019 I bought a plot of land with my savings and started building a small house. The build is still ongoing and I have taken out a loan from the bank to continue with the project. I also support members of my community who are in need with money for food and shoes to keep children in school.

I know I am here because CAMFED invested in my education, yet there are so many others who need support. That’s why we are building a community that has a spirit of helping each other, so we can all become economically stable. Our activities are focused on supporting this generation of students, who next year will be leaders of our communities — and they too will have that generous spirit of volunteering to help others reach their dreams.