A mother and son separated by war, then reunited in far north Queensland after 20 years, say they want to make a difference to their community.

Pascasia Nyirashaka feared she would again never see her eldest son alive after they were displaced by the Rwandan genocide in 1994.

The mother of seven was given refugee status in Australia 16 years after she last saw her son.

"From 1994 I hadn't spoken to him. We didn't know he was still alive," Ms Nyirashaka said.

"My husband and my two sons Dennis and Joseph went into the jungle during the violence, and that was the last I saw of my two sons.

"My husband was a Tutsi and I was a Hutu, so we dispersed. It was hard to be together."

'It was hard to convince me I had another mum'

A chance discovery by a friend of Ms Nyirashaka's who had travelled from Cairns to the Congo began the lengthy process towards their reunion.

"My friend said to me, I saw a boy that looked like you in the Congo, he's like you, his face is like your face," Ms Nyirashaka said.

"So, I went into migrant services and told them, then I started ringing him and getting to know him again, telling him his story.

"I was scared about meeting him again, but then I saw him and I just held him for 30 minutes and thought 'Oh my god'."

For 20 year-old Dennis Bemeliki, the reunion was an emotional one.

"It was hard to convince me I had another mum, so during the time before I met her we spoke a lot on the phone," Mr Bemeliki said.

"She sent me some pictures and then I was convinced. I couldn't sleep knowing I had a family in Australia.

"Now I am here I have so many things I want to achieve. I want be a nurse and one day make a documentary to inspire others.

"I want to give people hope."

Ms Nyirashaka and Mr Bemeliki now enjoy spending as much time as possible together. ( ABC Far North: Frances Adcock )

'For a year I was just eating leaves'

Close to 1 million people were brutally slaughtered in just three months during the Rwandan genocide in 1994.

Fleeing the violence as a refugee, Ms Nyirashaka travelled across three countries, walking more than 1,200 kilometres in three years.

"I walked from Rwanda to Congo and gave birth to my daughter Ester. It took seven months to get there and this was the last time I saw my husband but not my sons," Ms Nyirashaka said.

"I then walked from the Congo to Angola for one year and then Angola to Zambia trying to avoid the violence that followed.

"I was so hungry for a few years, and for a year I was just eating leaves.

"When I was walking from Angola to Zambia I was pregnant with my son. I carried my daughter on my back."

'This country is like heaven'

Living in Cairns now, life is very different for the family.

"I now work in childcare in Cairns and I love it. I work a lot but the kids love me. I was a teacher in my country," Ms Nyirashaka said.

"I have also worked as a cleaner. I like working, earning my keep. I don't want to take any government help. I want to work.

"This country is like heaven. I am so lucky. This is the best country."