Burundi Eco – The earlier a talent is detected, the more profitable it is – 2024-08-31 17:47:35 – 2024-08-31 17:47:37 – 2024-08-31 17:49:41 – 2024-08-31 17:51:32

Burundi still has a long way to go in the area of ​​developing young people’s talents. The lack of centers dedicated to talent development and the low involvement of parents constitute, among other things, major obstacles. The actors in this field suggest a more active involvement of public authorities.

“Initiatives aimed at detecting and promoting the talents of young people remain lacking in Burundi,” notes Jean Daniel Mugisha, head of the Betsal’el leisure center. And this is despite the various activities organized here and there, especially during the summer holidays, to stimulate and awaken the talents of young Burundians. These activities, mostly organized by private associations, have shown their effectiveness, although limited, according to experts in the field.

“The overall goal of supervising children during the holidays at the Betsal’el leisure centre was to awaken the latent potentials in them. Sometimes, these potentials are unknown to young people and their parents. It is only when the child has the opportunity to try something that he or she can discover that it is actually his or her talent,” explains Mugisha. He stresses that it is important for children to discover their talents early, because “knowing your talent early allows you to exploit it quickly, which makes the results bear fruit sooner,” he adds.

After the sessions organized by this center, the young people and their parents were surprised to discover that they had a potential that could make them live, but that they did not know about it. “This shows that these potentials were dormant and that they had to be awakened, otherwise the bearer would never have been aware of them,” confirms Mugisha.

Insufficient centres, a hindrance

Danny Bindariye, director of the Art in Life centre in Rumonge, has no doubt that there are many young people whose talents will be of no use to them, not because they do not have them, but simply because they have not had the opportunity to discover and develop them.

Bindariye regrets that centres offering such opportunities to young people are rare and often ineffective, because their initiatives often lack support from administrative authorities. He suggests greater involvement of public authorities in this area. Jean Daniel Mugisha shares this view. He deplores the fact that the few functioning youth centres are private initiatives, often lacking sufficient equipment, which limits their impact. “Buildings alone are not enough for such a centre. You need competent trainers, suitable equipment, materials, etc.”

Mugisha also notes that even the few existing centres and other opportunities often only benefit young people living in urban centres. He proposes increased funding for this sector, because after all, according to him, a talent detected and valued is not only beneficial to the bearer, but to the whole society.

A little-known and undervalued sector

Based on his experience, Bindariye says that the biggest challenge that the Art in Life center has faced is the lack of involvement of parents, sometimes due to ignorance. This has also affected the activities organized by the Betsal’el leisure center. The manager of this center informed us that out of about fifty children expected for the sessions they had organized, only about twenty were able to participate. He calls on parents to facilitate their children’s access to these unique opportunities.

“A child may show a passion for drawing, but be held back by their parents who fear that their talent will prevent them from doing well in school. It takes us a long time to explain to them that this talent can, on the contrary, be a key to success for their children,” explains Bindariye. While waiting for the proliferation of public centers, Bindariye calls on other artists, wherever they are, to mobilize to help the young people around them to detect and capitalize on their talents.