About the Project
Reconstruction of a rural school in Mugunga District, North Kiva, DRC. Our efforts were aimed at reconditioning the classrooms which had been vandalized by armed militia groups who had been using the school as a local headquarters. In addition, our funding provided a four-compartment latrine and fresh water collection point for the school and classroom furniture (desks and chairs).
Location
Mugunga, North Kivu Province the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
Quick Project Stats
| Funding Date | December, 2021 |
| Luena Investment | $6,500 USD |
| CBO Partner | Programme for the Well-being of Children (PWC) |
| Village | Mugunga, North Kivu |
| Country | Democratic Republic of Congo |
| # of Children Impacted | 500 |
| Community Contribution | provision of manual labor |
Protracted Civil War and its Devastating Affect on the DRC
Since the early 1990s, conflict and violence have been driving rising numbers of internally displaced people (IDPs) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The country’s northeastern regions have been particularly affected, where conflict continues to force tens of thousands to flee their homes. Clashes between various non-state armed groups, local defense militias, and military/government security forces combined with frequent sectarian violence resulting from competition over local power and resources have wrought havoc on civilians; many of them women and children. Environmental disasters (flooding, earthquakes) as well as epidemics (Ebola and COVID-19), have further complicated the ongoing humanitarian crisis. According to the IDMC, the DRC had the second-highest number of new conflict displacements globally in 2017, 2018, and 2019, and the highest figure for 2020, reaching 2.2 million people.
State Violence Disproportionately Impacts Children
Displaced Congolese children, particularly those separated from their families and/or orphaned by violence, are extremely vulnerable to hunger, disease, sexual violence, and forced recruitment by non-state armed groups. Together with international organizations, the government has taken steps to end the practice of employing child soldiers, and currently, more than 30,000 Congolese child soldiers have been demobilized from the ranks of various armed militia groups throughout the country. Despite this progress, the country’s education sector is extremely precarious and unable to integrate the growing population of displaced children and former child soldiers in host regions. Many rural schools and hospitals in the eastern DRC were besieged by warlords and armed militia groups for years, and as a result, were left vandalized and in desperate need of repair and reconstruction.
Luena Foundation Helps to Rebuild Schools
Working with our local partner, Luena Foundation provided funding to reconstruct a local school that had fallen into disrepair after several years of civil war. In addition, our funding provided for the construction of a four-compartment latrine for the school and classroom furniture (desks and chairs). At the completion of the project at least 50% of girls will be enrolled and monitored closely to complete primary education level.
Meet our Partner Community-Based Organization
Beginning in 2008, Programme for the Well-being of Children (PWC) has upheld its vision of enhancing the well-being and the preservation of the dignity of vulnerable children in Africa. Their mission is to support vulnerable children with their material and psychological needs and to defend their basic human rights. With a base in South Africa, PWC has expanded its programs into the Eastern Great Lakes region with an office in Bukavu, DRC.
