Our hut is still narrow
There are dozens of young people who want to learn, there are dozens of young people who see the opportunity to change their lives, there are dozens of young people who come to rebuild themselves as capable men and women, there are dozens of young people who want to be penetrated by innovation, there are dozens of young people who come to knock on the door of AGIR-RDC, and yet our hut is still so narrow. It is therefore difficult to welcome them all. Our hand, although generous, is still short to serve everyone.
When the need arose
Indeed, since the volcanic eruption, AGIR-RDC in its response to the crisis that followed, wants to make available to local communities tools that can enable them to rebuild and be actors of a sustainable development within their territory which, beyond the volcanic eruption, is an entity delayed by wars and intercommunity conflicts. Among these tools are professional training in innovative trades such as painting, masonry, driving, ...
For a month now, we have launched training in masonry, driving and cutting and sewing in the village of Mujoga and Buhene in Nyiragongo Territory. A village that was devastated by the lava of the Nyiragongo volcano and that is struggling to revitalize itself.
The will yes, but is it also the means of our will?
Surprisingly, the influx of young candidates for training was greater. The demand was therefore beyond our expectations and means. There are now 70 young people eager to learn, motivated to become economically independent thanks to the work that the trainings predestine them. 70 young girls and boys who want to change, who want to be limbs of transformation of their community thanks to the trainings in innovative trades. But we are not able to fulfill their will now. The two classes and the two trainers that we are taking care of are largely insufficient to supervise this cohort of young people, no matter how much they want to.
The target has been well chosen though
These young people are initially at risk. Being in a border zone with Virunga Park, a stronghold of some twenty armed groups, young boys are often subject to recruitment into these negative forces when they live in total idleness without work, while young girls live under the threat of sexual and marital violence once they have no relative financial independence for their empowerment. These trainings are therefore a response, a stone in the construction site of the pacification of the Nyiragongo region. It is a pity that our hut is still too narrow to satisfy these first 70 candidates, our means allowing us today to supervise only half of them.
Fortunately we can still
But it is still possible to meet this high demand. One more hand to support our work in this community could allow us to enlarge our hut, to welcome all of them and to make this training program a door to the haven of peace that we wish to see Nyiragongo become. This is the appeal that is being made. Join us, support our work and let's impact together. The youth of Nyiragongo are counting on us.