Ubuntu - Village of Life

25/12/2025

The Ubuntu Village of Life wishes you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year filled with joy ,love and success!

02/12/2025

A Mother’s Grief. A Son’s Mission.

When I was seven years old, I witnessed my mother’s grief after losing my younger sibling. That pain became my compass. It inspired me to study medicine and, ultimately, return to my village to create Ubuntu Village of Life—a maternal, newborn, and child care center dedicated to ensuring no mother or child suffers the same loss my family did.

After 30 years of work, I am humbled and grateful to see this promise fulfilled. But Ubuntu isn’t just a word—it’s a way of life: “I am because you are.” My family could not have done this alone.

To all our partners and supporters, thank you. Your incredible support has helped turn a childhood vow into a living mission that touches countless lives.

📹 Watch this heartfelt story as my mother shares her experience, and see why Ubuntu Village of Life exists—to bring hope, care, and dignity to mothers and children in need. thanks to U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, BurundiSegal Family Foundation

13/11/2025

UVL: From a Rented Bar to Sub-Saharan Africa’s First Rural Digital Health Innovation Hub
What started in a rented bar in rural Burundi is now the region’s pioneering maternal, newborn, and child digital health innovation hub: Ubuntu Village of Life (UVL) Hospital.
After four years of paper records, we’ve gone fully digital with OpenMRS-Odoo, powered by Starlink. The impact?
✅ Faster, safer patient care
✅ Streamlined staff workflows
✅ Quality healthcare reaching the last mile
UVL is now a center of excellence for rural digital health—blending cutting-edge tech with community-centered care to save lives.
None of this would’ve happened without our incredible partners:
🙏 Madiro, the Rousseau Family, US Government, AlayaCare, Segal Family Foundation, Dovetail Impact Foundation, and our unstoppable local community.
UVL proves it: innovation + collaboration = transformed healthcare for the underserved U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, BurundiSegal Family Foundation

06/11/2025

From a Dream to a Regional Healthcare Model
In 2021, the UVL Clinic (Ubuntu Village of Life) journey began in a rented bar with just 5 rooms and 5 staff members. Dr. Alexis, UVL Founder & CEO, can scarcely believe what has happened in just four years!

Today, UVL Clinic is a regional integrated healthcare model with over 50 staff, offering comprehensive maternal, newborn, and child care (from antenatal to C-sections and neonatal care), plus an educational center and an agroecology field school.

This incredible transformation proves: Keep your dream alive—everything is possible.

Thank you to God, our partners, family, and friends.

Watch our journey unfold
Segal Family Foundation U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, Burundi

30/06/2025

The impact of collaboration on enhancing the quality of care. Segal Family Foundation.

30/05/2025

In , where poor connectivity has long hindered access to modern tools and resources, the Starlink installation enhances internet speeds from 8 Mbps to approximately 400 Mbps, marking a 5000% increase in bandwidth. This leap in connectivity directly supports Dr. Alexis Nizigiyimana, Founder and CEO of Ubuntu - Village of Life, in his vision to transform Mugamba into a “Silicon Valley of Burundi.”
This donation builds on prior support from the U.S. government, including the recent provision of over $500,000 in advanced medical equipment by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to the Ubuntu - Village of Life Hospital. This contribution has significantly improved maternal and pediatric care for thousands of rural patients, particularly women and children under five.
“With this high-speed internet connection, we can now accelerate the digital transformation of our healthcare programs—moving from paper-based to fully digital systems using OpenMRS software. Our hospital is evolving into a teaching and research institution,” said Dr. Alexis Nizigiyimana. “This isn’t just about faster internet—it’s the foundation for smarter, more effective service delivery and inclusive development.”
The American Corner Bururi, recognized as a top-performing American Space by the U.S. Ambassador on May 8, 2025, serves as a vibrant hub for youth empowerment, education, and innovation. Andika Magazine U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, Burundi, Yehuda Neumark, Lori DiPrete Brown, Segal Family Foundation, full story: https://andikamagazine.net/bridging-the-digital-divide.../ U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, Burundi, Segal Family Foundation

10/05/2025

31/03/2025

On March 28th, 2025, the American Corner Bururi celebrated Women's Month by gathering women from Mugamba to honor women leaders and share inspiring testimonies from commune representatives. The event showcased the vital contributions of women to their families and communities while focusing on collective goals rooted in hard work and teamwork. An open forum addressed challenges such as discrimination and gender inequality, with women leaders encouraging participants to advocate for their rights and embrace their capabilities. Ultimately, the occasion aimed to empower women to overcome obstacles and realize their full potential.
U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, Burundi



Segal Family Foundation
McGill University
USAID - US Agency for International Development

21/03/2025

The King Baudouin Foundation delegation visited Ubuntu Village of Life on this Thursday, March 20, 2025 from 2.30-4.30 pm. The delegation was composed by Hervé Lisoir, Head of Programme Europe & International and Emile Uwezowamungu, a delegation member.
The visit aimed to understand UVL’s interventions and see which areas are likely to be eligible for future partnerships.
Upon their arrival, the delegation members visited the American corner and enjoyed the high speed internet connection for a short time, learned about all the corner’s programs and visited the library before taking a tour at the UVL polyclinic.

At the polyclinic, the visitors started with the reception and triage service. They appreciated how speedily the service works and learned more about the way data from patients is recorded and saved using both registers and computers.

In the service of medical imagery and dentistry, the visitors regretted to see that the clinic has a modern equipment but some of them are not functioning because of the lack of stable and enough electricity.

The brief tour at the polyclinic ended in the maternity, neonatology, hospitalization and laboratory services. There was a question on how we manage to keep the premature babies if electricity is not stable. The host team mentioned that they always start a generator when there is a case of emergency.

The team was presented all the spaces of plants including more than 18 medicinal plants, vegetables, fruits and different animals. They have been interested by how we make sterilizers from simple elements including compost, ash and products from some plants. The guests wished there was a way of examining the composition of the fertilizers made that way to be sure the exact amount of element x and element y from the quantity z of the fertilizer.

The visit ended in a fantastic way where participants shared lunch and got the occasion of discussing about the next steps.

22/02/2025

This Wednesday February 19, 2025 was another important day in terms of promotion of a better education in Mugamba launched by UVL.
We were honored by the presence of the education specialist from the US embassy in Burundi, sir Sintuka Ramadhani where he shared very insightful options on how to define one's talents and finally be able to grab opportunities that are shared by different institutions including the US ones at Tora Lycee. The session was also attended by the UVL Access students who also demonstrated the competence they acquired during the year they spent participating in the program.
Some gifts including dictionaries, pens and cups were given to students who contributed most in the discussions, or asked very crucial questions during the sessions. The Tora Lycee principal assistant thanked the US embassy for being such a valuable partner in the education in Burundi and request to provide more books and dictionaries as they need more of them.

U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, Burundi
McGill University
USAID - US Agency for International Development
International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP)
Ntisumbwa Anicet
Alexis Nizigiyimana
Akeza.net

28/01/2025

Empowering Healthcare, Saving Lives! 🌟

This week, the UVL Polyclinic held an important Neonatal Training Program for our dedicated healthcare professionals. 🩺✨ This hands-on training represents a crucial effort to reduce neonatal mortality and enhance the quality of newborn care in our community thanks to madiro, McGill University, Segal Family Foundation, U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, Burundi

28/01/2025

Empowering Healthcare, Saving Lives! 🌟

This week, the UVL Polyclinic held an important Neonatal Training Program for our dedicated healthcare professionals. 🩺✨ This hands-on training represents a crucial effort to reduce neonatal mortality and enhance the quality of newborn care in our community thanks to , McGill University Segal Family Foundation U.S. Embassy Bujumbura, Burundi, International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP),