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Giftiana, 20 years old 

 Giftiana was born with a dream to be her own boss one day, to create something of her own. Being the 2^nd born in a low-income family of 4 siblings, she has watched both her parents struggle with their own small-scale business ventures just to put food on the table.

 Her community in Maruvango village Arumeru District didn’t and still doesn’t have much to offer for a girl that is creative and passionate about her dreams. After primary school, she was selected to join a ward secondary school then later transferred to a boarding school in a nearby district. 

 Her determination to work harder towards her dream of being a fashion designer in a big city increased because she didn’t have to worry about walking home miles away from school as before. Despite having supportive parents, Giftiana’s journey at school was not as smooth as she had hoped. Half the time she couldn’t be at school because her parents had not paid the required contributions. Out of desperation while at home she would either spend time with local tailors watching their work for inspiration or hang out with her village friends.

 Then before she was able to go back to school, her dream pathway was shuttered - she got pregnant. She lost all hope but her parents gave her the strength to keep looking forward. She now has a baby girl.

 Through neighbors and friends, she was introduced to Jifundishe Organization and was selected to receive a scholarship to take a 12months tailoring course. Her mother volunteered to stay with her baby girl while Giftiana goes to a nearby boarding vocational training center. Now she is ready to do anything for her dream and her baby.

She is happy to be back on track towards her dream. Her goal is to start her own fashion shop in a big city where she will put all her imaginations and hard work to inspire the women fashion industry. My guess, is that she’ll call her shop ‘Gracious Designs’; because that’s the name she gave her daughter.