Assistance for Widows and Orphans
The ongoing unrest in Congo has produced huge numbers of widows and orphans over the past few years. Two programs supported by HEAL Africa are working to address the needs of these groups.
AMAVESA: Support for Widows
Widows are marginalized in many ways in Congo. They are often blamed directly or indirectly for the death of their husband. Often they are publicly humiliated and stripped of their possessions, which may include children old enough and strong enough to be of service. Part of helping women regain their dignity and status in their family and community is addressing the cultural beliefs which perpetuate the many injustices they face. This is done in many ways, but must begin with the women themselves changing their own attitudes. It provides a safe group in which they can grow and learn new skills.
The AMAVESA program was founded by Virginie Mumbere in 2004, to encourage and create support for other widows. AMAVESA is an acronym for “Widows of Zarepath”, a story found in the Old Testament (2 Kings 17:8). About 750 widows now are part of this group, and the key to success is that each group helps "give birth" to a new group and nurtures it along. By "paying it forward" in this way, they are able to provide an emotional and spiritual support base, as well as providing practical support to each other.
Most widows are supporting their own children and often those of other members of the family. AMAVESA has been a factor for change in women's lives by being present, by encouraging and providing an emotional and spiritual support base. Literacy, practical business advice, a structure for saving, and the motivation to help others are key elements of this program.
The AMAVESA program provides:
- Listening rooms where women can come for help in safety, along with support groups which meet regularly;
- A community theater to raise awareness among widows of their rights;
- Farming groups using bought or rented land, where women may harvest their production and sell it for a profit or keep it all for their families.
- Training so that women can teach others laws regarding inheritance, the challenges of the law, and group dynamics. This information is disseminated by radio as well.
- Savings programs funded by group members that issue small loans to help women in business and help each other build homes.
Orphans
In Congo, the word "orphan" usually denotes that one parent, usually the father, is deceased or no longer actively involved in the child's life. Where children need placement, HEAL Africa’s policy is to encourage foster families rather than institutions. In the long term, it is more constructive to help foster families become stronger and keep children within the family structure as much as possible. In this way they will stay closer to their home area, be in contact with other family members, and may be able to inherit their parents’ land. If they remain in Goma, where unemployment is rife and opportunities scarce, their future options will be grim for all but a few. If they are able to return to their communities of origin and have access to land for farming, they will at least be able to sustain themselves.
Although HEAL Africa does not have a “sponsorship” program per se, the foster family programs are well supervised by people who know the families and the children involved. Grants are given once, and the solidarity groups continue for years. New grants are given to new families. This spreads the opportunity, and does not create jealousy and special relationships which are often the case in the classical “sponsorship” model. It also does not require the number of staff who can speak English, translate letters and take pictures of the children. The staff spend the time with the foster children and families in helping work through issues—whether integration into the new family, school, or business success.
Almost every family in North Kivu and Maniema has foster children, most of the time the children of relatives who have died. As this is such a huge problem, and foster families are often overwhelmed themselves, HEAL Africa’s strategy is to help local groups strengthen the skills and the solidarity among foster families in order to better serve the needs of the orphans among them. Most of the programs of HEAL Africa working with community have a type of grant program: grants because there are no banks to offer security for the large sums of money that loan officers carry with them from village to village, and the large numbers of soldiers on the roads make anyone vulnerable. Foster mothers are grouped into solidarity groups, and the women work their own businesses, but help each other during difficulties. This began with Choose Life about three years ago; it has extended to many of the other programs working through Nehemiah committees. The same rules apply in each of the programs so as not to incur competition and multiple registrations.
HEAL Africa will continue to try to find foster families for orphans, and empower those families to raise the orphans of Congo within the context of their own culture, enable them to inherit their family’s land, and keep them in school so they will have a chance at a positive future.