Ushindi Project

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THE USHINDI PROJECT IN EAST CONGO

A  Rotary Summary:  July, 2010

     Project Director:  Dr. Victoria Bentley

     Organization:      Empower Congo Women (ECW)

     Key Sponsor:      Montecito Rotary Club, Santa Barbara, California

                               Lawrence Thompson, Architect, International Chairman

   This summary has been prepared to familiarize interested parties about the nature and benefits of Montecito Rotary’s International Program and, hopefully, encourage their sponsorship.

Nine Current Club Sponsors, Rotary:

   Montecito, Carpinteria, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Sunrise, Oxnard Sunrise,

   Santa Maria, Thousand Oaks, Santa Barbara Rotaract, Wakefield, Rhode Island   

PROJECT SUMMARIES:

1.  THE USHINDI CENTER, BUKAVU: 

     Growing from several rooms rented in downtown Bukavu over a year ago, now seven rooms have been secured, allowing the bottom floor to provide adequate sales space for products made by the women war victims after and during vocational training provided at the Center.  This project centers on trauma treatment, vocational training, micro loans and other support for women war victims of the East Congo War.  The Center also acts as Dr. Bentley’s administrative center in Africa, and a great deal of work is also spent arranging schooling for children of the war victims, focusing upon literacy and language skills.

    A matching grant in 2009-2010, sponsored by Montecito Rotary, provided over $20,000 to support the project, with these funds almost delivered to the bank in Bukavu which handles ECW’s accounts.  After a letter was delivered from Luz Ortiz, our District Governor, to the District Governor of District 1950 of Congo, the local Bukavu Rotary Club wholeheartedly offered assistance to the project on many levels. 

    Liaisons with many local non-profits, including Panzi and Ciriri Hospitals, which provide medical assistance to the War Victims treated by Ushindi Center.  The store at the Center has heavy foot traffic, and may be self sufficient soon, according to Dr. Bentley (refer to blogs at healingtraumaindrcongo).  A Swedish psychologist has not only donated time in providing therapy to victims, but has trained the women in training other women not in the Center’s care, expanding the benefits of the Center greatly in this regard.

   Teachers in sewing, pottery, handicrafts, soap making and other vocations are paid by the center to train the victims in means to support their families, as the women have no vocational skills or training, and typically must support families of 4 to 9 children.  Their husbands and villages are long departed, due to their rejection

                            The Ushindi Project, Operational Summary  6/8/2010  p.2

after enduring publicly staged gang rape by soldiers under the hire of mining companies in the hinterlands far from Bukavu.  200 of these women have now been rehabilitated and are financially self supporting themselves and their many children.  Over three million women and children are estimated to be in this terrible predicament all over Congo and parts of Rwanda.

THE MUMOSHO PROJECT:

   Mumosho is a suburb south of Bukavu, including six villages, which was greatly devastated in the war seven to twelve years ago.  The infrastructure of the area has been vastly degraded, and even the local school has no roof- a key problem in a country which experiences rain almost every day.  A highly respected UN worker and mediator, Amani Mataboro, has been befriended and has offered to work with Dr. Bentley in providing a similar center to Usindi in Mumosho. Amani is providing his own money to help develop this project and is very invested in making the program work. Augmenting this is access to several women who can act as vocational instructors- in sewing and other skills. There is a building available for the work- making this Center a natural satellite of Ushindi and a valuable extension of the program. 

   Grant #2 by Montecito Rotary is in progress through R.I. Headquaters, and will be funded soon from $10,000 of club donations and International Committee funds for this work.  Rotary will be the Non-Governmental organization LEADING in rehabilitating this area, as no other NGO has been active here. A much larger project is envisioned for Mumosho, working in many areas of need, which will set the communities on a path of full rehabilitation.  Details of this will be forthcoming.

   To date, goats have been delivered to improve the livelihood of the farms in the area, the Burhembo School has a new roof, and the Mushovo Center is being organized and is operating, in waiting for the Rotary funds to expand and enhance its services.  Production of water filters for all uses will be manufactured at the center here, and along with other products manufactured, will make the Mumosho Center self sustaining.

3.     THE BUKAVU-UVIRA YOUNG WOMEN’S PROJECT

    THE PROJECT proposes to create two safe homes where young women and girl survivors of sexual gender based violence (SGBV) can live while they heal and rebuild their lives with access to medical care, food, trauma counseling, vocational training, education, business training, family planning, income producing projects.  School fees are also provided for their children’s’ education- a new concept to promote self sufficiency here.  This is a HOLISTIC grass roots approach that keys on a business development project based on traditional systems and local market economies.

   Bukavu and Uvira homes will work together to form a farming-catering business that is SELF SUSTAINING, together housing 160 women and their small children each year and reintegrated into the community and its workplace. 

The Ushindi Project, Operational Summary 6/8/2010 p.3

Farm good raised in Uvira will become the supply for a catering business in Bukavu, much in demand. Other skills, such as sewing, dressmaking and weaving will also contribute to sustain operations. The communities will benefit from more jobs, income and business opportunities, as well as the reduction of street children, prostitutes, child soldiers, and thieves in the communities.

    4.  OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:

Micro-loans:  42 successfully executed to date- 100 goal for next year. This will affect the lives of over 1,000 people.

    The Ushindi Center Staff performed well in Victoria’s recent absence, successfully executing Center’s work.  A local Board of Directors, made up of 6 locally successful and responsible women, has provided good local leadership, centering the “ownership” of the work by the residents, not the NGO.

    Charles Bisimwa of Bukavu Rotary has come forward to help on sustainable agricultural training, himself an accomplished agronomist.

    TFT, the trauma healing method, has been found to relieve insomnia, headaches, confusion, despair, anger, tension and depression.

     Midwives, trained by American midwives (!) and in liaison with Victoria, are scheduled to conduct 10 day training for rural women in Nyangezi, 1 hour south.

 Victoria Bentley has been active in helping roof schools, promote hospital free treatments and prescribing treatments for patients outside the Ushindi Project.

    Other individual supporters include dozens of people in New England and the California Bay area.  This support, along with Victoria’s funds, has paid for work until the first Rotary money arrives this month. 

SUPPORT IS BEING DEVELOPED FOR THE PROJECT:

   Over FORTY Rotary District clubs have been contacted to see the project presentation at their meetings, and liaisons are being established accordingly.  We welcome introductions to key members of other clubs who may be potential partners in this timely and important project.  Please call Larry Thompson, at 962-2236 for further information, or arrange to visit our club Tuesdays at noon.

       Yours in Rotary,   

                                             Lawrence Thompson, Architect

                                             International Chairman, Montecito Rotary