Daniel

“Ever since I was young, I loved education. When I met RefugePoint, they helped me to enroll in my final year of primary school. They hadn’t yet started supporting students to attend high school,” Daniel, an unaccompanied minor from the Democratic Republic of Congo, told us. After Daniel completed primary school, Kimani, RefugePoint’s Education Officer, suggested that he enroll in vocational training to improve his piano skills. Daniel agreed. “I wanted to grab any opportunity that I could to study,” he told us. “After four months of training, I started getting small, paid gigs.”

The following year, when RefugePoint began supporting secondary education, Kimani reached out to Daniel, who was 16 years old at the time, to see if he’d be interested in enrolling. Kimani was surprised when Daniel told him that he was already attending high school. Daniel had saved his earnings from his music gigs to cover his tuition, and had enrolled himself in school!

“I used the money I was making from playing the piano and selling fruits after school to pay for my school fees, but it was difficult. Since I was using all of my spare time working, I couldn’t focus well in school,” Daniel told us. RefugePoint helped to enroll Daniel in a government school and began covering his school fees. 

“It wasn’t easy pursuing vocational training and trying to do business and playing music all at the same time. Music loves to practice, and I practice a lot, but now I spend a lot of time studying. Right now, education is my priority. During my holidays I’ve been studying. I’ve been learning new words and reading. My favorite subjects are languages, geography, and history. Some subjects that we study here aren’t studied in my home county, so that is always a challenge. I used to study in French, and here we study in English. I fail in some subjects, but I always learn from my failures,” Daniel shared with us.

RefugePoint helps to enroll children in early childhood education, primary school, secondary school, and special education courses. We also assist adults to access apprenticeship and vocational skills training. In addition to covering tuition, uniforms, and learning materials, RefugePoint also provides stipends for children in boarding schools, and life skills training camps when school is on break. 

“When I met RefugePoint, I was wondering how I would start and what I would do, but my dream came alive. I no longer study part-time and worry about my school fees. Now, I can concentrate on my studies. In the future, I want to study telecommunications and things relating to technology. My vision is to study, no matter what. I can see a bright future for myself irrespective of my circumstances,” Daniel shared with us.