Friday, March 1, 2019

Silencing Guns in the Congo

The United Nations started a campaign against silencing guns in the Congo. By 2020, the United Nations plan on controlling gun violence for the whole continent of Africa. Guns cause threat, terrorism, and violence throughout nations and countries. Especially in Africa because they have their own army that are allowed to have guns. This campaign wants to resolve conflicts in the Congo. Illegal activities happen in ungoverned countries like the Congo. "DiCarlo stressed that there is reason for optimism. She recalled that just a few days ago, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pointed to the recent peaceful elections and peace deals saying “a wind of hope is blowing in Africa.” She noted that “across the continent, entrepreneurship is up, access to education has increased and child mortality has declined". Hopefully, since good opportunities for the Congo are rising, the gun control will be fixed in the near future. It will help the country in many ways. 

Sources

http://www.tribtown.com/2019/02/27/un-united-nations-silencing-africas-guns/

Building Hope for Women

The group "Trocaire" wants to build hope and opportunities for women in the Congo. Partners and Organizations of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) want to build peace and gender equality for women. Relief web states that gender inequality has been a major issue in the Congo. Women do not have the same rights that men have. This project is meant to set goals such as:
  • Peace
  • Equality for women
  • Women empowerment
  • Building communities for women
"Positive and sustainable change is created when individual people, communities, civil society and other institutions are all involved in the change that we want to create". Building a civil society is important for Congo because without being civil, they should be civilized because that is what causes peace. It starts with communities in the Congo coming together as a society and being nice to one another. 

Sources

https://reliefweb.int/report/democratic-republic-congo/building-hope-and-opportunities-women-drc

Congo Square Rhythms Festival

A bunch of artists like the Kumasi Afrobeat Orchestra and Rebirth are performing in the Congo Square Rhythms Festival. This festival is Mardi Gras and New Orlean's themed. It is going to provide diverse music and dances. Beginning March 30 and 31st, it will begin at the Louis Armstrong Park located in the Congo. The Congo Spot has been known to be a historical place because it is where the enslaved Africans were allowed to gather on Sundays. Off Beat magazine states "The Congo Square Rhythms Festival combines live music, a large arts market, and a Soul Food Court with special events to create an immersive experience. Mardi Gras Indians, African dance, brass bands, jazz, soul-funk, and Garifuna music from Honduras and West African Life will hold the festival’s main focus throughout the two days".  The Congo festival is going to be a bright and happy spot to hang out with friends. There will be music you could dance to and food that you could enjoy!

Sources

https://www.offbeat.com/news/congo-square-rhythms-fest/

Congo builds new Roads and Job Opportunities

The Republic of Congo wants to construct new road operations. The Congo is hoping to create local jobs for people in the city. This contract is supposed to be connected to main roads in Africa. This is a way for Congo to build their new city life. Cars and transportation will be more accessible to the people in the Congo. "The contract - Egis's first in Africa for road operation - also covers two stretches of the road. The work will create more than 500 local jobs along the route". There is plenty of room for the Congo to create more roads for society. The Egis group is planning on targeting other cities around the world. They will be creating unique roads and creating an urban life. Here is a video of plans they are doing:

 https://www.egis-group.com/action/news/2018-highlights

Sources

https://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/egis-wins-operational-role-for-540km-republic-of-congo-highway

Nuns visiting the Congo

There are nuns all around the world. Nuns from the Notre Dame have come to Congo and send out prayers and positive outcomes for the Congo. In the Post Herald article, Flynn says "It was really refreshing to hear some positive stories about these humble and compassionate Catholic women who have done so much, yet we never hear much credit given to them for all the good they do throughout the world".f These nuns visit different countries all around the world and work hard everyday to help people in places like the Congo. The nuns from Notre Dame have prayed for people in the Congo who have lost their lives due to diseases and illnesses. They also contributed in soups and kitchens for support. 

Sources

https://www.bostonherald.com/2019/02/27/nuns-do-gods-work-around-the-world/

Thursday, February 28, 2019

Daily Positivity in Schools

On September 3, 2018, a beautiful school was built in the Congo. The Congo Peace school is a community of children and teachers that help younger students in the Congo come together and work for peace and equality. Kids have the opportunity to learn about political issues in a non-violent way in this school. It is made to help kids grow up in nonviolent homes and keep peace within their society. Their education is primarily learning about nonviolence. Rural areas had non-existent schools and not so good conditions. They are trying to generate and educate children now. In the Action Kivu article, they state that "Peace and nonviolence will be a part of the curriculum, with teachers trained to discipline without violence, and to identify and address trauma in children. With class sizes limited to 40 versus the typical 75-80, children will receive more one-on-one attention along with an education to become peaceful leaders with a sense of agency" (Kivu). This is an amazing opportunity for kids to grow up in a stable environment and learn from non-violent organizations within their school.

This Youtube video below gives us a overlook on the Congo Peace school. He explains why it is so important different from the other schools in the Congo. He also mentions a way you could contribute by donating money to help the school more. 


https://youtu.be/r0YvLyQJp30

You could also donate on the home page of the Action Kivu article. Each amount you donate will give shelter to the kids and give the children a chance to interact in after school activities. 


Sources


https://www.actionkivu.org/peace-school/

Contributions to the Ebola Crisis


There has been an outbreak of Ebola spreading in the Congo. Since 2008, Africans have been dealing with this issue. The World Bank Group donated $80 million dollars to the Congo to help them. Relief Web states, "The World Bank Group and the Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) have approved a total of up to US$80 million in grants to support over half the estimated cost of an escalated six-month Ebola response effort being mounted by the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and international partners" (World Bank). The World Bank has been helping the Congo to prevent other countries from getting ebola and weaken the risks of this disease. 

Donating to the Congo was a success because the World Bank donated $425 million to the insurance companies. It makes a such a big difference if you donate. Anything would help out the people in the Congo because it is a serious issue that has been going on. The partners of the World Bank help fight Ebola and build strong health systems for the Congo. 

Sources

https://reliefweb.int/report/democratic-republic-congo/ebola-escalated-response-us80-million-commitment-democratic