MACON, Ga. — In 1994, the Rwandan genocide killed hundreds of thousands of people.
Former Mercer business professor Etienne Musonera is from Rwanda. He created a program in 2015 to help his home country.
Craig McMahan is the director of Mercer on Mission, and he says Musonera is very passionate about helping his people.
"One of the ways that he could help them as a business professor was to help establish businesses in these communities that have been decimated through the genocide," McMahan said.
Since 2015, Mercer students have been going to Rwanda to work with agencies, establish entrepreneurship programs, and help widows and orphans start small businesses.
Junior accounting major at Mercer Abbie Karl is making the trip this year.
"I'm most excited to connect with the women and understand their stories and everything about their culture," Karl said.
She says she can't wait to help .
"We will be working with a non-governmental organization called MindLeaps, and they help women in the lowest class system there and they help them learn skills to help them move further with their business," she said.
Karl says they couldn't make the trip without Mercer University taking special precautions.
McMahan says Rwanda's traveling restrictions were lenient compared to other countries that are closed to the U.S.
"The way the Rwandan government has structured their travel operation, it allowed us to enter the country with just a one-day quarantine," McMahan said.
Along with quarantining for 24 hours, students and staff must get a COVID-19 test before the trip and once they land in Rwanda.
Karl says she appreciates how cautious the school is being.
"They're really on top of it. They've been a big help," Karl said.
After landing, getting tested, and quarantining for a day, students will be free to explore the country.
The women and children that they'll be working with on this trip will also get tested for COVID-19 before they all meet.
Students will spend 2 weeks in Rwanda and return back to the United States December 17th.