From December 9 to December 18, 2024, a specialized medical team from HEAL Africa Hospital conducted a new campaign for cleft lip and palate repair in the city of Beni, around 340 km from Goma. Thanks to the collaboration between HEAL Africa and Smile Train, the campaign restored hope to 26 individuals from Beni and its surrounding areas.

Completely free of charge, the campaign covered not only medical expenses but also meals and transportation for the patients. These restorative surgeries offered the beneficiaries—both children and adults—a future where they can fully integrate into their communities, free from the burden of stigma and discrimination often associated with these congenital conditions.

A Malformation at the Heart of Many Beliefs

In many African communities, the birth of a child with a cleft lip or palate is often surrounded by superstitions. Some people associate this malformation with mystical causes, while others see it as divine punishment. These beliefs can have devastating consequences for the affected families. “During one of our previous missions in the Kasai region of the DRC, we treated a baby born with a cleft lip and palate who had been abducted by a rebel group. For months, the child was used in mystical practices, with militia members believing he would grant them supernatural powers to deflect bullets,” shared Sylvain Kwiratuwe, the focal point for cleft repair activities at HEAL Africa.

The mother of a girl treated during this campaign, Mrs. Kasonia (a pseudonym), recounted the prejudices she endured: “When my daughter was born, some people claimed her malformation was caused by my eating wild boar habit during pregnancy. Others suggested that I must have quarreled with someone malicious while I was pregnant. These explanations were as hurtful as they were baseless.”

Medical Progress Serving Human Dignity

Cleft lip and/or palate is a congenital malformation that prevents the proper formation of the upper lip and/or palate during fetal development. Its consequences can be both physical and functional—feeding difficulties in infants, speech and language impairments, dental and hearing issues—as well as psychological and social, including low self-esteem, weakened parent-child relationships, and social stigma.

Thanks to significant medical advances, these malformations can be corrected through age-appropriate surgical interventions, often accompanied by orthodontic and speech therapy treatments. Since the start of their partnership in 2008, HEAL Africa and Smile Train have transformed the lives of 2,946 individuals in the DRC through cleft repair surgery. Through free care provided in Goma and remote areas during medical campaigns, this collaboration delivers far more than a medical solution: it restores dignity, hope, and smiles to those who need it most.