One of MHCD’s objective is the reduction of poverty and providing proper and affordable health care services to vulnerable people living in villages and rural areas. To achieve these objectives, MHCD focussed on education and training as education is the key to development and the only way that gets people out of ignorance and make them independent. For many years, we had been researching on the best way to make the vulnerable people to be self sufficient and we found that providing education for them will be of great help. Even if education takes a long time, when they finish, the education helps the whole family and communities.
We started by creating nursery and primary schools in many villages that really turned out well and helped hundreds of children to finish their education and get school certificates. It was a challenge to many of those children to progress into secondary school education because the costs are high for most families living under the poverty line. That is when we decided to open MHCD secondary school in Luvungi. Most of the secondary schools in Congo provide general education but we decided that in order to help our students to be professional and self sufficient, we should create a polytechnic secondary school. Apart from general subjects like maths, physics, chemistry, they also learn technical subjects like tailoring, mechanics and IT that helps them get into professional lives after they finish secondary school. We have departments like Auto-mobile and general mechanics, tailoring, Information Technology, social studies, electricity, and Pedagogy. We have incorporated the topics so that when the students finish their studies, they can get employment. Luvungi MHCD secondary school is the only school with the above options in the whole region of Ruzizi valley and Bafuliru mountain. Its unique options attract students from the whole of Uvira District and even our neighbouring country Burundi. Every year we have more than 1000 students from different villages who come to learn. Most of these students are vulnerable from very poor backgrounds (orphans, street, and internally displaced children}.
Since we started the school, we have realised a lot of change in the community. Many children who could not afford to finish their secondary school have now completed, are working, and taking care of their siblings. All those orphaned children from villages where MHCD had primary schools and could not make it to secondary have come to the Luvungi technical school and most of them have successfully completed their studies. During the war, many young girls were raped in the DRC and could not complete their education while others were rejected by their families, but MHCD took them into school, mostly in tailoring and social work. There are those who have already finished and got their national diplomas and are now supporting their siblings and families. One of the students who was raped used to come to school with her child. MHCD supported her until she succeeded to sit the national examination and last year, she got a national diploma in tailoring. Since she was the only one with a tailoring diploma in the whole of her village, one local organisation employed her to teach single mothers and young vulnerable women. She is now responsible of more than 10 women that she trains, and she has a good life now. She testified and said that MHCD secondary school has transformed all her life. She had been living in stress and depression but through education, the whole community respects her and she now feels stronger and special. There is another young man who got a national diploma in mechanics and is now in another District called Kalemie heading an Auto mobile business. He also testified and said that through MHCD technical school, he is now able to take care of his 6 siblings and they no longer suffer as before. There are lots of testimonies that show how the education program has changed lives of so many children and families.
Every year our school is one of the top performers with several distinctions. We really thank Bethesda ministries international through Luvungi educational fund who are taking care of and supporting some of these children. Many of children who had never thought of getting into secondary school have now not only completed but have become responsible citizens and are helping the community. Your monthly support has really helped us in improving the program. We thank the MHCDASA for all their efforts and sacrifices they put in in collecting sewing machines, school chairs and tables. Through the containers the send to Congo, we have been able to give the children quality education and are now doing well in examinations. We thank too the Computers for Congo for providing computers and laptops to school. Through your support, MHCD IT students have topped national exams every year in IT. Lastly, we would like to thank Dr. Luc and Delice for their contribution in building classrooms and making sure the children get good education. The vision that God gave them to open the MHCD secondary school has had a great impact to many communities of DRC and changing their lives for better. We still have many students who do not have support and need your love, care, and support. Please feel free to join hands with us and support so we can provide education to the many students at school who do not have support.
