Seemingly Forgotten But Not Forsaken - A Congo Story
Written by: Stephen Henrich
Every day is a blessing for the Africa Women's Hope Initiatives team in East Africa! The day was bright and warm as we made our way early in the morning to the Zarephath Parish church in Kimironko, the home church of Bishop Theophile. The church itself, like hundreds in Rwanda, has been closed to worship services by the government since 2024, but open for small meetings.
Our first gathering was with two groups from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) who will be new partners in the AWHI microloan program. One group, Nyangezi, comes from Bukavu, a city south of Lake Kivu west of Rwanda itself. The other group of beautiful Congolese women, Nkanga, comes from a huge refugee camp of 14,000 people in the very northeast of Rwanda where they have been for over 20 years. The conflicts in the DRC are well known in the western press but the stories we heard were more detailed and heartbreaking than I can possibly relay to you here. The women expressed the feeling of being forgotten by the world but God is still at work in their lives. Hopefully, they will feel His love as they begin to succeed with this infusion of capital!
Heidi and Donna both shared from the Word of God with these faithful women. Heidi spoke on the parable of the talents encouraging the women to use their gifts. Donna recounted the stories of refugees in both the Old Testament - the story of Daniel - and Jesus' own experience of being a refugee in Egypt.
Despite the extremely difficult conditions they live under, these women continue to strive to provide for themselves and their families. Amazingly, and with God's help, these incredibly strong women also manage to support people in their respective areas who are even poorer than they are - loving one another as He has loved us.
These two groups will receive interest free microloans and follow the same path that all our other groups do - paying back the loan weekly over sixteen weeks, doing their personal savings and contributing to a capital savings account that will eventually lead to self-sufficiency.
Nkanga Women Cooperative
Nyangezi Women Cooperative
These two new groups bring to four, the number of Congolese cooperatives, that AWHI has welcomed as partners. We love supporting women in all parts of East Africa!
Following lunch with our new friends, we had another very productive meeting with most of the leaders of our African partner, Africa Hope Initiatives (AHI). These annual meetings allow us to ensure that the accountability and sustainability systems are still in place, and we can field questions that come from the AHI leadership and even from the women in the cooperatives.
A quiet dinner on the veranda of Chez Lando was an excellent way to put a bow on a gift of a day. Please pray for these Congolese women as their faith is strong and their challenges are great.