During the 63rd FIFA Congress, Gianni Infantino, President of the world football governing body, spoke passionately about a ball made by rural women in Kayonza District, urging participants to buy each at $1,000 (Rwf1.1 million) as a way of supporting them.
Since the visit of football officials and subsequent endorsement by the FIFA president, the ball has become a symbol of recognition for the women previously living in vulnerable conditions.
The women are part of the Urugo Women's Opportunity Centre located in Kayonza, which supports women from in and around the district, who were previously living in vulnerable households, to become economically and socially independent.
The soccer ball is among the many things the women do at the centre which was established by a non-government organisation, Women for Women International (WfW Int), with the support of donors to equip them with income generating skills.