Dingile Nyirenda, a young woman residing in Kazungula district, was a beneficiary of the Sponsorship Program from grade 6 through grade 12.

During that period, Dingile lived with her older sister, who was unable to provide the financial support necessary for her education. At the time, there was no free education policy in place, making it challenging for her sister to pay for Dingile’s school fees and supplies. Dingile’s sponsorship began while she was attending Holy Cross primary school in grade 6 and continued until she completed grade 12 at Linda Secondary School. Unfortunately, after finishing grade 12, she was unable to secure sponsorship for tertiary education due to not passing all of her subjects and had to retake the exams for the subjects in which she had underperformed.

In 2017, Dingile experienced a tragic event when her sister died in a road accident, leaving her family devastated and struggling to meet their basic needs. With no one to take care of her, Dingile was faced with a difficult situation.

Two years later, in 2019, she was approached by a friend in Kazungula to help out at a mobile money booth while she waited to retake her exams. Dingile accepted the offer and worked as a mobile money agent for several months. This experience helped her realize her passion for business and customer service, and she enjoyed working at the border where there was a high volume of traffic.

Using her skills in catering and customer service, she rented a shop and started cooking and serving meals to people at the border. After some time, she was able to save enough money to buy her own shop and expand her business with more equipment and employees. Dingile is grateful to Response Network and her generous donors for their support, which enabled her to use her education to run a successful business. She is now an independent young woman who can take care of herself and her siblings through her restaurant income. Dingile encourages other Kubala girls to utilize their skills and venture into business, as she enjoys being her own boss and having a thriving restaurant.