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Gospel singer and medic, Bienvenue Zebedayo, has joined the government’s campaign to fight stigma among youths living with HIV/AIDS with a plan to raise funds to construct a music school where all youth can express themselves.
The campaign was raised through a fundraising charity live gospel concert aimed at fighting stigma and discrimination against youth living with HIV held on December 21, 2025, at Foursquare Church Kimironko, bringing together gospel artists, young talents, faith leaders, and community members in a message of hope and inclusion.
Dubbed “Gospel Music for Hope and Inclusion,” the concert is organized by Bienvenue Zebedayo in partnership with Dream Village Organization, a youth-focused civil society group supporting young people living with HIV through psychosocial care, advocacy, and talent development.
At the concert, the artist said that from providing medical care to youths living with HIV/AIDS to playing piano and singing for them to accept their status, he was motivated to start the campaign from the experience of working with youths.
“I have been touched by the pain and struggles of youth living with HIV go through. The concert is more than a music event. It is a movement of faith, healing, and inclusion,” said Zebedayo.
“I discovered that I have a gift of music, and it is through this gift that I can change my life and the lives of others. Music gave me an opportunity to study and become a doctor, and now I use it to bring joy to children living with HIV,” he said.
The concert will feature performances by gospel singers, as well as talent showcases by youth living with HIV, including singing, poetry, drama, and dance. Inspirational messages, prayer sessions, testimonies, and stigma-reduction awareness talks will also be part of the program.
Government’s Call:
Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC) has welcomed the initiative, describing it as timely and impactful. According to Dr. Basile Ikuzo, Director of the HIV Prevention Unit at RBC, Rwanda recorded about 2,500 new HIV infections this year, with 900 cases among young people.
“While ARV coverage among adults stands at about 90 percent, youth coverage is alarmingly low at 80 percent, largely due to stigma,” Dr. Ikuzo said. “We highly support youth-led initiatives like this because they help address stigma in schools, communities, and even churches.”
He encouraged young people to use their talents and potential in the collective fight against HIV and AIDS.
A youth representative from Dream Village Organization said stigma continues to isolate many young people living with HIV, pushing them into silence and fear.
“This initiative will help us come out of darkness and isolation,” the representative said, thanking Zebedayo for initiating a platform that gives youth a voice.
Organizers hope the concert will strengthen collaboration between faith-based institutions and community organizations, mobilize moral and material support, and lay the foundation for annual gospel charity events and long-term stigma-reduction campaigns led by youth themselves.
The organizers have invited church members, gospel music lovers, youth groups, civil society organizations, and the wider community to contribute to this campaign and support the youths living with HIV, emphasizing that inclusion begins with understanding, compassion, and action.
The funds that were collected at the fundraiser will be injected into constructing a Music Training Center at the Rwanda Nook Center in Gahanga sector, Kicukiro district.
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