The ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has already cost the lives of close to 3 million children. Apart from this catastrophic figure it has left many thousand others traumatised, suffering, and in need for help. Providing them with formal education is one way to alleviate their suffering. Our information assistant in West Africa met with children who are enrolled in ECHO-funded education projects and heard about their dreams for the future.
“When I dance, I feel good; I feel powerful and proud,” says 16 year-old Jean Gulesa*. Jean is one of the 46 children sharing in the recreational and creative activities at a children’s ‘safe learning space’ in Maibano village, Kalehe territory in South Kivu. “My mother died when I was a baby and my father is a soldier; I’ve only seen him twice my whole life.”
This is the heartrending story of many children in this village of some 9 000 residents in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). A story of loss and struggle as a result of a war they know little about. The persistent conflict in eastern DRC has gravely affected thousands of children. Many have seen the death of parents, relatives or siblings, experienced physical and sexual violation, suffered untold emotional trauma. Millions were deprived from a ‘normal’ childhood, one which includes a formal education.
Surrounded by rising ridges, Maibano village is calm for now. It has been since last December when the last attack occurred. The population here is a mix of families displaced from villages beyond the hills. Most of the native residents of Maibano have been displaced before, many of them multiple times.
In DRC, the education system is already very weak in the whole country. The cycles of conflicts in the east have made education take a turn for the worse. Some schools have closed down repeatedly due to insecurity gravely disrupting learning. In Maibano, like most parts of rural eastern Congo, the schooling infrastructure is poor. It is difficult to find and keep trained teachers in these remote hotbeds of conflict.
Desire Baraka* is 17 years old, an orphan since a young age. Her only relative is her elder sister who got married and left Maibano village. “I live at the mercy of good Samaritans who took me in as their daughter. I help with chores and sometimes in the farm; now I’ve started coming to this learning centre. I never attended school when growing up, but I’m now learning how to read and write.”Desire is attending the Accelerated Learning Programme that targets children of ages 13 to 18 who never had a chance to go to school.
“In emergencies and in particular in protracted crises like DRC, education can play a crucial role in sustaining lives and alleviating suffering by giving protection to affected children and youth,” says Annabelle Vasseur, the European Commission’s humanitarian aid advisor based in Bukavu. “As in others sectors of humanitarian assistance, it is critical that the assistance reaches the most affected zones and populations. However, this selection can be difficult in a country like DRC where education is also affected by poverty and weak governance. We have set up very clear priorities and we only focus our help where the needs are the most acute.”
Through the European Union Children of Peace project, ECHO is targeting to give 2 000 children affected by conflict in the DRC a grounding education. Education is crucial for both the protection and the development of children affected by conflict. This initiative is meant to give children psychosocial support and help create some sense of normality.
“Children do not readily identify guns as a threat. They are used to seeing armed men around,” says Justin Kaseke, Project Coordinator at War Child Holland based in Bunyakiri. “But they easily identify the effects of the conflict, on their lives and in the community.”
War Child Holland acknowledges that there are still gaping needs. “Lack of education is a huge problem here,” explains Justin. “A very high number of children do not get a chance to attend formal education and with the EU Children of Peace project, we are only reaching a small section.”
The EU Children of Peace initiative is boosting the quality of education in four locations within South Kivu through training of teachers, providing teaching and learning material, giving children safe recreational and learning spaces, offering basic education and vocational training, and facilitating ‘catch-up’ education for children who have missed school for a short duration of time.
Desire Baraka is learning the alphabet, but she will soon join vocational training where she will earn skills in tailoring. “Once I learn how to stitch clothes, I will work to sustain myself,” she says.
As of Jean, the soft-spoken young man hopes to complete his secondary education and become a professional musician. “I started dancing at the age of six. When I dance, everything feels alright; I don’t think about my problems anymore. This is what I want to do in life.”
*Names have been altered to protect the identity of the children