In DRC, members are building resilience with 43% now keeping emergency savings and almost half able to afford malaria treatment - vital progress in a fragile context.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has faced immense challenges - from the world’s deadliest Ebola outbreak to decades of conflict and political unrest. Despite over $24 trillion in natural resources, millions of people remain trapped in economic struggle.
Our partnership in the diocese of Aru, north east DR Congo, began in 2018. Over the course of a 4 year pilot programme, our partners formed and trained 180 literacy and savings groups with more than 3,000 members, 84% of whom were women. Women are particularly marginalised in Aru, and many were learning to read, write and count, and to start businesses and earn their own money, for the first time.
The impacts were profound, with households able to afford to invest in mattresses to sleep on, kitchen implements and iron sheets for the roof of their homes (instead of grass thatch).
More children were going to school, including girls, and families could afford medicine when they needed it. Parts of the diocese are under militia control - but we have found that groups in these regions are amongst the most committed and successful. They are visited for training and support by one of our partner trainers who is a pastor as the militia allows the pastor to move freely in the region.
The 180 groups from the first cycle have now graduated from the programme - they continue to operate but no longer need any training or support from our partners in Aru. The team in Aru are therefore now busy on a new cycle; since 2023, they have formed another 180 literacy and savings groups. They have deliberately targeted even more remote parts of the diocese for this cycle; 88% of women in the groups formed in 2025 either did not go to school at all or did not complete primary school. They now have an opportunity to learn new skills, build their confidence and start small businesses to support their families.
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