Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Program
Quick Facts:
Formerly known as the Belgian Congo or Zaire, the Democratic Repulic of Congo (DRC) is located near the Equator. Seventy plus million people inhabit this large county in which Western Europe could fit. It shares borders with Angola, Zambia, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda , South Sudan, Central African Republic, and the Repbulic of Congo. Rich in resources and with the Congo River running through it, DRC has the potential to become a thriving country able to provide for its citizens. That is not its present reality for millions and civil unrest on the borders, lack of infrastructure and social services, diseases, maternal childbirth deaths, and poverty result in many children becoming orphans.
This is a new program for Journeys of the Heart (JOH). JOH has identified an orphanage in Kinshasa, the capital city, which is well managed, well staffed, and which has taken in several dozen children whose parents are unknown. The orphanage was organized and is managed by an ethical and competent director who was educated and obtained a law degree in Western Europe and who has returned to DRC to help orphans.
The children in this orphanage typically range in age from 0 to 5 years old. The staffing includes a pre-school teacher, a nurse who visits every morning to check on the children’s health, an on-call doctor, and others who assess the children’s development. Occasionally there will be siblings available and on a case by case basis, JOH may consider placing unrelated children at the same time with a family.