When I was little, I was always a good student and when I saw my classmates who continued to study in the preparatory circle because at the time there was no high school on my island, I often cried in secret.
In 1998, at the age of 18, I left my island, Brava, to look for work on the island of Santiago. I always wanted to be independent, but on my island, there were no job opportunities because it is a small island.
While in the City of Praia, I heard that the third phase of literacy class started on Brava, in teaching for adults. I returned as soon as possible, but I couldn't get in because they were already advanced, and I missed the first year. However, the following year, another class opened and I decided to go. I did the fifth and sixth years in an integrated way.
At the time, many people considered me crazy for going to study at night as an adult, but I didn’t give up and always had the support of my ex-boyfriend, the father of my daughter, with whom I was living at the time.
I was lucky because as soon as I finished literacy in 1999, two seventh-year post-work classes opened at the high school and there were many applicants, because, normally in Brava, the seventh-year classes will start with adults, but many didn't make it to the end because they gave up.
I received the prize for best student and the Literacy Program supported me with 50% of the tuition and the city council provided the remaining 50%.
At the same time, they happened to open a competition for a kindergarten teacher, so I went to take the test, passed, and started working in 2001 while still studying at night. In that same year my daughter was born. I was 21 years old.
The decision that impacted my life forever:
When I finished the 12th year with good grades, having even gone to the honor roll, I enrolled at the Instituto Superior de Education in the city of Praia to train in the area of childhood education or in the Portuguese language, however, the opportunity arose to go to Portugal.
The director of the high school contacted me, saying that there were some vacancies for courses in Portugal because he knew that I had dreams of continuing my studies. Having finished high school with the best grade for both day and night students, they soon gave me the priority in choosing the course I wanted to take.
After talking to all my family members and my boyfriend at the time about the opportunity to go to Portugal, they all supported me, but the hardest part was having to leave my daughter behind. They all encouraged me to take the opportunity and promised to take care of my little girl who was 4 years old at the time. So, I made a big decision that would impact my life forever.
In 2005, at the age of 25, I and 3 people much younger than me left for the City of Leiria, in Portugal. With the support of the City Council, I was going to take the business management course.
I stayed in Portugal for almost 5 years and there were several difficulties, including adaptation, financial hardship, some health problems, and the hardest of all, having to stay away from my little princess. If I didn't have the willpower, I would have given up right away. During the course, I worked at night in one of the school canteens, and I managed to go on vacation twice to visit my daughter.
As I am an Aries I didn't give up and in 2010, of the 4 students who left together, I was the only one to return to my home island with my CV already sent to several companies, but from the City Council I got a second three-month internship in the areas of accounting and human resources.
Afterward, I was hired to be in charge of human resources, and soon after, I accepted the invitation to work as Municipal Secretary.
From that date on, I joined a political party and started an active political life, with the idea of being able to make a difference and help people. In the meantime, I participated in the electoral campaigns on the list for the National Assembly of the Republic, so with the city council change, I lost my job. Then I ran for the position of Manager of the National Program to Combat Poverty, a government program that operated in 7 of the 10 islands that make up the Cape Verde Archipelago. I was hired to manage the Technical Unit on my island, and I stayed there from 2014 to 2019. During the period I worked as a Program Manager, we helped many families create a source of income.
I had the opportunity to do several technical and professional training actions, and I had the opportunity to work with many young people and women on the islands of Brava, Fogo and Santiago, providing training and consultancy to those who wanted to create and implement a business idea and to those who wanted to develop a business.
I had the opportunity to replace my colleague in the National Assembly of the Republic and in 2020 I ran for President of the Municipal Assembly of my beloved island, but I lost the election, thus getting the position of vice president.
After that, with my daughter and my current husband living in the United States, I decided it was time to gather and build my family and I decided to come and live here at the age of 41. I arrived at the decision that I would build a new story here.
On my island, I am a reference for many people, including young people and women
because I always tell my story to young people and other women to never deprive themselves of their dreams. Education, studies, and knowledge are goods that no one can take away from us and that make us feel good in society.
Making the decision back then was the beginning of becoming the WOMAN I AM TODAY. An Empowering Woman, with her own will, fearless, who never gets tired of looking for new knowledge and learning.
~
Margarida Rodrigues - Cape Verde
