the magic potion discovered by the Nyiragono disaster victims for their empowerment

For more than a year, AGIR-RDC has been implementing the TWAWEZA SHINDA project for the victims of the recent NYIRAGONGO eruption. This development project aims to strengthen community resilience and facilitate socio-economic reintegration through an integrated approach in the Nyiragongo territory in three sites: MUJOGA, BUHENE and MUGUNGA.

Following the eruption, lives were devastated. Fields and houses burned, livestock and commerce abandoned and lost... There was no hope.

NZEKANABO Batera, a resident of Mujoga reveals: "The day of the eruption I was at the market selling musururu and then I heard people shouting that the volcano was erupting. Scared, I didn't think about my merchandise anymore. I ran home to pick up my children and when I arrived at the house the door was open. Not a single child or my husband and I felt lost. I kept the money and the documents of my plot in my suitcase but when I tried to lift it I felt it was heavy and then I left it in the living room without taking anything and I left without direction."

Confined to makeshift shelters, only humanitarian and community aid in food and sometimes non-food items kept the stricken population alive in their distress but it was temporary.

How to rebuild life after the disaster? This was the question that was not answered in the daily life of these victims.

To help answer this question, the TWAWEZA SHINDA project set up counseling groups in all sites to strengthen resilience. In these groups, the beneficiaries themselves had the idea to start making contributions in order to initiate AVECs in which they could borrow money to resume their economic activities. As any development project relies on the efforts of the community, TWAWEZA SHINDA had a good opportunity to integrate in the community.

In order to reach the socio-economic reintegration, the project passes by trainings in all the sites: culinary art, aesthetic man and woman, cut and sewing, driving school, masonry and cleaning.

A financial support to the " AVEC " follows to incubate this initiative of the sinsitrés at their level.

BORA MUHANDE, member of the group of Mugunga had received a fund of capital reinforcement confides: "I lived in Buhene in a rented house and the volcano had burned it. Like the other victims, I had moved with my children to the Nengapeta school and there AGIR-RDC found me and sensitized me, then I joined the discussion group. In the discussion group we made contributions and then AGIR-RDC strengthened us and I asked for a loan of 100.000fc to strengthen my peanut business. Today this business is growing little by little. I feed and clothe my children and I save in our AVEC of the group of word and I repay little by little the 100.000fc because God makes grace in my trade. I will never thank AGIR-RDC enough for this concern that it has towards the poor, may God bless you infinitely because you have pulled me out of a long way.

There are 65 people in all the discussion groups and 21 in the youth club to be registered as beneficiaries of the socio-economic reintegration funds in order to rebuild the economic fabric torn apart by the volcano eruption.

The reconstruction of the economic resilience is the last step, the last fight in front of the crying vulnerability of these men and women who do not capitulate despite the disaster that surprised them.

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