Bloody battles have been raging between government soldiers and rebels in the Eastern North Kivu province of the DRC, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes. Nearly 80% of refugees are women and children, who attempt to escape the violence in one of the many temporary refugee camps.
Despite extraordinary efforts by international organizations, supplying the large number of refugees with food and ensuring their safety has not been achieved. While performing our activities, we keep in contact with ADRA's Congo representatives in the Kinshasa and Goma, who regularly provide us with updates on the current situation and the refugees' needs. Goma is the center of the country's Eastern region which is most heavily affected by the fighting. The largest of three camps in the vicinity, Muhimba Camp, shelters 30,000 residents, while two smaller camps approximately 7,000 more.
Our foundation aims to support the two small camps , as the larger international aid organizations are not meeting people's needs here.
Within the framework of our donation collection campaign we are focusing on two activities:
Primarily, we collect material donations that are most needed in the refugee camps, and transport them in a 20-foot container to the refugee camps, with the help of the C.H. Robinson shipping company.
We filled a 20-foot container with donations from ADRA-Hungary, ADRA-Austria, Hungary's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Baptist Aid Service and several individuals. We are sending it on its way today. Ensuring that the donations reach their destination, and coordinating their distribution in Goma, will be the responsibility of ADRA's chapter in the DRC, as well as the Foundation for Africa's Hungarian Congo representative. The shipment contains the following donations:
20 hospital beds, clothing items for men, women and children, school supplies, medical equipment and a mobile X-ray machine (donated by ADRA-Hungary and ADRA-Austria).
Durable foods, baby formula, blankets (donated by the Baptist Aid Service).
Two professional medical cases (donated by the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Individual donations
The shipping of the 20-foot container from Budapest to Goma was organized by C.H. Robinson Kft. at no cost.
We are grateful to all our supporters.