Yvonne Ninyembabazi

Lab Scientist|Mastercard foundation Alumni| Baobab Brand Ambassador|YCNTDs Champion🇷🇼

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

Today, we wrapped up Phase II of our #Bilharzia #Storytelling #Initiative Project in @RuhangoDistrict with glitz and glamour. More on https://t.co/pmvPUjkxW0

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

Clean water | Healthy communities | Zero #Bilharzia.

Today, we resumed our campaign in @RuhangoDistrict to empower students with knowledge and resources to stop #Bilharzia for good.

#BSIRwanda #BeatNTDs #IsukuHose

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

#Water sustains life, but unsafe water silently harms it.

On this, #WorldWaterDay , the @BSIRwanda stands with communities affected by #Bilharzia , a neglected tropical disease linked to contaminated water.

#InternationalWaterDay #BeatNTDs #BSIRwanda

[Youth Combating NTDs @YouthCNTDs]

How do you catch a disease-carrying fly and save lives? Four Senegalese heroes volunteered to become the bait. Their names are Satine Ba, Saliou Touré, Souleymane Sagna, and Mamadou Lamine Ba.

"The Fly Collectors", produced by @TheENDFund, takes us through this special Hero's Journey, telling the story of a 15-year battle against #RiverBlindness, a brave quest to catch the flies that once blinded hundreds of thousands of people throughout Africa.

Our screening of this awe-inspiring film, cohosted with the @medsar_rwanda, celebrated these heroes and aimed to:
💡Persuade more young people to learn about NTDs.
🗣️Humanise the burden of NTDs in the student community through storytelling.
🚀Inspire youth-led actions around NTDs through advocacy and research, among other activities.
🔗Highlight the interconnectedness of NTDs with other social determinants such as health, the economy, and policy-making.

Watch the film: https://t.co/oCB8yJZQ5R and please share your stories of ordinary people who have acted selflessly to #BeatNTDs in their communities!

A special thanks to our @YNinyembab9564 @BertrandByishim for organising the screening.

#NTDFreeGen

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

On International Women’s Day, we honour the legacy of Dr. Mwele Malecela, an icon of integrity, courage, and service.

Read more:👉 https://t.co/VWYfTlyB4b

#IWD2026 #BeatNTDs

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧'𝐬 𝐝𝐚𝐲!

Today, we honor the resilience of women everywhere and raise awareness about the health risks many face while collecting water.

#BSIRwanda #BeatNTDs #EndNTDs

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

Stronger communities start with prevention!

Join the @BSIRwanda movement to eliminate #NTDs and protect futures.

@merckgroup @RBCRwanda @RwandaNGOForum @Knooliet

#BeatNTDs #BSIRwanda #FightSchistoRw

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

We're delighted to share our recently published study:
“Evaluation of impact of Bilharzia storytelling on community awareness in @BugeseraDistr ."

Thanks to the support of @RBCRwanda @merckgroup @RwandaNGOForum

#BSIRwanda #BeatNTDs #IsukuHose

[Youth Combating NTDs @YouthCNTDs]

Neglected Tropical Diseases intersect deeply with the most prominent global health crises of today, including Gender-Based Violence and Mental Health.

By convening and participating in multi-stakeholder capacity-building sessions that zoom in on NTDs, YCNTDs aim to ensure that interventions to these crises are holistic and #LeaveNoOneBehind.

In this special session, "Addressing NTDs Among Women Survivors of Gender-Based Violence in Post-Genocide Rwanda"​, our @YNinyembab9564 delivered an impactful presentation to peers from the @IFMSA, @GoScorp_Rwanda, and @medsar_rwanda.

Titled "Breaking the Silence: NTDs, GBV, Equity & Inclusion", the presentation:
📌 Highlighted how NTDs such as #SoilTransmittedHelminths and #FemaleGenitalSchistosomiasis disproportionately impact women survivors of #GBV, affecting their reproductive and mental health.
📌Encouraged future healthcare providers to always consider gender-sensitive, trauma-informed, and community-based approaches to GBV and NTDs diagnosis and care.
📌Motivated medical students to participate in advocacy, research, and outreach focused on NTDs and their intersections with other health challenges in Rwanda.

#BeatNTDs #NTDFreeGen

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

Stronger communities, Fewer #NTDs : #Rwanda is moving!

#WorldNTDsDay #BSIRwanda #BeatNTDs #EndNTDs

@RBCRwanda @Knooliet

[Merci NSABYUMUKIZA @MerciWaMwitira]

World NTDs Day 2026 | Unite. Act. Eliminate.
NTDs thrive where voices are silent.
As a youth advocate, I use my voice to unite communities, act with purpose, and eliminate NTDs.

#WorldNTDsDay #YouthAgainstNTDs #EndNTDs #Tujyanemo

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

As we take part in #WorldNTDsDay celebrations, our team is also on the ground to showcase our work putting an end to #Bilharzia and other #NTDs

@RBCRwanda @RwandaNGOForum @Knooliet

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

The wait is over: Today is #WorldNTDs Day 2026!

It's time to shine a light on Neglected Tropical Diseases and the communities leading the fight.
#EndNTDs #BSIRwanda #BeatNTDs

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

As we gear up for the #WorldNTDs Day, we donated Bilharzia's comic illustrated notebooks & boardgames to over 6,000 students in @BugeseraDistr & @RuhangoDistrict.

The illustrated notebooks serve as a wake up call to students to fight & eliminate Bilharzia.

#BeatNTDs #BSIRwanda

[Bilharzia Storytelling Initiative @BSIRwanda]

As we approach #WorldNTDsDay, let's be reminded that over 1 billion people live with a burden caused by #NTDs but This burden is preventable. Silence is not.

#WorldNTDsDay #BeatNTDs #BSIRwanda

[Rwanda Biomedical Centre @RBCRwanda]

WARI UZI KO!!

Indwara ya Bilariziyoze (#Bilharziose/#Schistosomiasis) iracyagaragara mu tugari turenga 1000, ni ukuvuga hafi kimwe cya kabiri cy’utugari twose tw’Igihugu.

Uko wayirinda:
✅Kwirinda kwituma ku gasozi
✅Kwirinda kujya mu bishanga utambaye bote cyangwa uturindantoki.
✅Kugira isuku y'umubiri, ibikoresho byo mu rugo, n'amafunguro.
✅Kunywa ikinini cya praziquantel ku batuye mu tugari twagaragayemo iyo ndwara.

Ibimenyetso:
⏩Kwishimagura,
⏩Kugira umuriro,
⏩Gucika intege

⚠️Iyo itavuwe kare, itera
❎Kuribwa mu nda,
❎Kwituma amaraso,
❎Guhitwa, n’ibindi

Icyitonderwa: Bilariziyoze ishobora kandi:
☑️Gutera kanseri y'uruhago rw'inkari
☑️Kugera ku bwonko

Kurandura indwara zititaweho birashoboka.
Nawe shyiraho uruhare rwawe.

#iSuku #IsukuHose
#EndNTDs #WorldNTDsDay

[Youth Combating NTDs @YouthCNTDs]

In times of conflict and displacement, women of reproductive age face hidden health threats that go far beyond daily survival.

#DengueFever, #Schistosomiasis, and #Leishmaniasis are three NTDs common in Ethiopia and Sudan that can also have particularly severe consequences during pregnancy, including miscarriage, preterm labor, anemia, and even maternal or newborn death. Yet, awareness about these risks is alarmingly low.

@JemalNanati and @Fatima_elbasri joined forces to fill this gap by conducting a research study on The Impact of NTDs on Maternal Health and delivering health education to displaced women in selected camps and underserved areas in their countries.

Through group discussions, visual materials, and culturally relevant sessions, our youth champions and supporting volunteers were able to raise awareness about how NTDs affect women’s bodies, especially during pregnancy, and how to seek care or prevention.
#BeatNTDs #NTDFreeGen

[Youth Combating NTDs @YouthCNTDs]

Youth-Driven Research and Innovation can Boost Efforts to Eliminate NTDs in Africa -@BertrandByishim @YNinyembab9564 @NewTimesRwanda
https://t.co/JFxSJzlyWT

[Youth Combating NTDs @YouthCNTDs]

"The search for love continues even in the face of great odds” -Original Author Unknown
These words come to mind and resonate deeply when we reflect on @Fatima_elbasri's community outreach held at the end of 2025 to raise awareness about #Dengue Fever in war-torn #Sudan.

In October 2025, The Telegraph reported that Sudan had recorded 24,800 Dengue Fever cases over the course of the year, the highest number ever recorded in one year throughout the country’s history.

In recent years, Dengue Fever outbreaks had already been on the rise in Sudan due to climate change-related phenomena such as rising temperatures and seasonal flooding, which create breeding grounds for the Dengue vector Aedes aegypti.

When the ongoing civil war broke out in 2023, it fuelled the spread of Dengue to its worst levels yet, as it created rapid population movement through displacement, destroyed health infrastructure, and interfered with the provision of access to clean water, adequate waste management, and vector control services.

In the face of such devastation, Fatima felt called to help empower vulnerable communities through a Dengue Fever awareness campaign delivered in collaboration with 2 hospitals and 11 volunteers in the Northern and White Nile States.

The campaign targeted local community members between 15-70 years old and living in high-risk areas.

Through visual and oral education tools, it aimed to:
📌 Increase awareness about the Dengue virus and how it is transmitted primarily through the Aedes aegypti mosquito.

📌 Highlight the impact of war and climate change on the spread of Dengue

📌 Improve recognition of signs and symptoms

📌 Promote effective prevention methods

📌 Support timely medical care-seeking behaviour

Our gratitude goes to the volunteers and the Dongola and Alduaim Teaching Hospitals for supporting this initiative.

#BeatNTDs #NTDFreeGen

[Youth Combating NTDs @YouthCNTDs]

Building Community Capacity & Empowering Youth to #EndNTDs: If young people are to contribute meaningfully to the fight against Neglected Tropical Diseases, they need to be well informed about both the risks and preventative measures in their own communities.

YCNTDs recently delivered a very special NTDs Awareness Training to the Kivusha Primary School #WASH Club in Bugesera District, in collaboration with the Bilharzia Storytelling Lab Rwanda.

The training impacted young members of the WASH Club, aged 12-15 years, and at the P4-P6 school levels. The participants engaged in interactive education exercises such as infographics learning, board games, and songs, improving their awareness of Schistosomiasis and Soil-Transmitted Helminths, which are highly endemic to Bugesera.

Our gratitude goes to our Rwanda youth champions @YNinyembab9564 @BertrandByishim for continuing to lead our grassroots efforts to build an #NTDFreeGeneration.

#YouthLedAction #BeatNTDs