South Africa: Education for refugee children
Randry is 23 years old, comes from Burundi, and has lived in Johannesburg for 16 years. He was one of the first refugee children to receive education and support from the organization Three2Six. Today, he is a teacher and teaches there himself.
“There was a lot of violence and armed conflict in Burundi. That's why my mother decided to flee to South Africa with me and my sister, who was three years old at the time. My father was already there, working for a security company. We wanted a better life – far away from the violence and conflict. The journey was very long. We traveled for several weeks – by bus, by train, and on foot. When we arrived in Johannesburg, I saw the tall skyscrapers and was overwhelmed.”.
We applied for asylum and received a temporary residence permit. But no state school would accept me. Then my mother heard about an organization that welcomes children like me: Three2Six. I'll never forget what it was like when I arrived there – I felt at home, everyone was friendly. We learned the curriculum every afternoon from 3 to 6 p.m., but we also had time to play and were given something to eat.
Three2Six opened many doors for me: After four years, they helped me get a scholarship and I went to a different school. Then the COVID pandemic hit. When I was asked if I could help out at Three2Six, I immediately agreed. I volunteered there for 18 months, then I was hired as a teacher. At the same time, I'm studying education at university; I'm in my third year. Now I'm working for the organization that helped me as a child. It's a wonderful job
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