Mushimyimana Gaudence

Focus Areas

Mushimyimana Gaudence is the Founding Managing Director of DisAbility Link, a social enterprise launched in 2013, and co-founding executive director of the Rwandan Organisation of Women with Disabilities. The enterprise aims at creating opportunities for people with disabilities to realize their ability, achieve their highest potential, and benefit from their independent living by availing on the local market of a wide range of affordable and accessible skills, knowledge, assistive products, and services they need. They provide advisory services for inclusion, create jobs for persons with disabilities, and organize on-job training skills for youth boys and girls with disabilities including leadership skills development, graduate placement and advocacy. She believes that behind every person with disabilities, there are untapped potentials.

Gaudence has played many roles in building the disability movement. She has been the national coordinator of the African Decade of Persons with Disabilities (2007-2009), deputy legal representative of the Umbrella of Persons with Disabilities in Fighting HIV/AIDS (2006-2008), secretary general of the National Union of Disabilities Organizations (2010-2016) and board member in charge of gender within Association General des Handicapees du Rwanda. She is serving on the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth Disabled Peoples Forum as the regional representative of women with disabilities since 2019, and women representative officer today. She was recently recognized in 2020 as a Woman of Courage by the U.S. Ambassador to Rwanda for promoting social Economic Inclusion of persons with disabilities in Rwanda. Gaudence is a bachelor’s degree holder in the social sciences.