One of the key aims of the Break the Silence Congo Week effort is to raise funds for several projects that Friends of Congo has worked on throughout the years. We feature FOUR projects that you can support.

Friends of the Congo (FOTC) is a 501 (c) 3 tax-exempt advocacy organization based in Washington, DC. Donations made to Friends of Congo is applicable for IRS tax credit. Our tax-exempt number is 37-1516674. Unless contributions are specifically dedicated to the global mobilization initiative, Ninety percent of the funds raised will support projects on the ground in the Congo. The remaining ten percent will go towards the Global Mobilization initiative.

PROJECT ONE - CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT!
Women and Children
Friends of Congo works with the Association of Widows located in the South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Association has been in existence since 1975. It is made up of over 5,000 widows located in 32 parishes in the South Kivu province in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

A key aim of the organization is to serve the widows of those who have lost their men as a result of the war that has claimed nearly 6 million Congolese lives since 1996. The Association of Widows also works with women who have been victims of rape and sexual abuse in an effort to provide them a support network and integration back into society.

The Association provides training, skills development, cultural education, health-care, child-care and numerous other services for the women, children and the communities from which they come. A top priority for the Association is the care of thousands of women and orphans who have been victims of rape and sexual violence as a result of the conflict in the East of the Congo.

One key project that will be funded through fundraising efforts during Congo week is a center for training, education and community interaction. The land for the construction has been identified and apportioned. A group of businessmen in Washington DC under the guise of the Kamal Foundation has committed to contribute $4,000 for each $1,000 Friends of the Congo raises. Our initial goal is to raise $10,000, which will net $50,000 for the building project (see below outline for building project).

1. Place or the building will be built: in the town of Bukavu, Province of South Kivu, Congo. The land has already been attributed for the building.

2. Beneficiaries of the building: Widows, orphans and women victims of rape

3. Businesses or objectives of building: Allowing women widows and rape victims to have a place where they can gather and organize their various activities.

As you know, widows have serious problems to find a place where they can meet, congregate regularly for business training and exchange of experience. The building will therefore serve as their office and a meeting place for various activities.

In addition, widows have difficulties to conduct their activities, which enable them to acquire training and produce for their livelihood. This building will allow them to have a main center for training i.e. sewing, knitting and literacy. Thus, they can conduct their activities knitting, sewing, and literacy.

All these activities allow widows to acquire training in a specific field so as to be able to find an occupation that can help feed and educate orphans. This building also will serve as a place where they can have gatherings, retreats and seminars.

4. Capacity: The building for widows of Bukavu will allow them to have:
-- Rooms or training workshops, exhibition and sale of their products;
-- Offices for the Association of widows;
-- Dormitories to house the widows from attending courses or seminars.
-- Vegetable gardens for an introduction to the livestock and agriculture.


PROJECT TWO - CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT!
Human Rights Education and Capacity Building of Civil Societies
Friends of the Congo is in partnership with Le Réseau National d’Éducation Civique, RENEC” (National Network for Civic Education), a network of fifteen Congolese civil society organizations for civic and human rights education in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) that spans the entire breath of the country. RENEC is made up of institutions from diverse sectors of the Congolese society: youth/students, religious, women’s groups, grassroots civil society groups, environmental groups and labor coalitions. RENEC provides education and training to the Congolese population regarding their civic responsibilities in a newly democratic society. Also, RENEC builds the capacity of grassroots organizations seeking to provide social, human rights and civic support to the people of the Congo.

Although Friends of the Congo provides financial and material support to RENEC so that it can realize its objectives, the needs are still enormous and material and financial resources are needed for the following:
1. Creation of a national center for civic and human rights education
2. Direct civic and human rights training
3. Capacity building of grassroots organizations
4. Production of multimedia materials for civic and human rights education
4. Production and broadcast of radio and TV civic and human rights education programs
5. Creation of a public affairs low power (radio and TV) broadcast network.

A more comprehensive treatment of the project can be provided upon request.

PROJECT THREE - CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT!
Global Mobilization
The purpose of the global mobilization effort is to educate the global community about the Congo, raise awareness about the situation in the country and mobilize informed support on behalf of the people of the Congo. Friends of the Congo pursues its global mobilization effort via the following avenues:

• Organize forums and events on the Congo (events list provided upon request)
• Undertake media outreach (media outreach list provided upon request)
• Conduct online advocacy and outreach (see FOTC Website, blog, facebook, youtube, twitter and other social network platforms)
• Publish pamphlets, articles, fact sheets and books about the Congo (Coming in October 2008 is a book on coltan and its use in modern society)
• Show films on the history and current situation in the Congo
• Advocate for sound policies toward the Congo on the part of the US Congress via lobby days and meetings with US elected officials
• Speak to diverse institutions about the social, political and economic climate in the Congo
• Inform the global community about what individuals and institutions can do to work with the Congolese people to change the situation in their country for the better
• Organize trips to the Congo
• Serve as a bridge between the Congolese people and the global community
• Provide a platform for the Congolese people to speak to the global community
• Collaborate with international Non-governmental Organizations to advocate for positive change in the Congo (See Congo Global Action Coalition)
• Work with media entities to get the Congo story to the global community (PBS Bill Moyers Show, Channel 13 TV New York, HBO, Bloomberg, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)
• Mobilize support for student, women, labor, human rights and other Congolese organizations striving to control their resources and utilize them for the benefit of the Congolese masses.
• Provide support for Congolese refugees by providing affidavit to immigration attorneys in support of Congolese seeking political asylum

PROJECT FOUR - CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT!
Lumumba Scholars Program
The Lumumba Scholarship Fund provides scholarships for students in need of financial assistance to pay their school fees. The average cost to send a student to school for one year is $450.

Coalition partners in the Congo choose the students who participate in the Lumumba Scholars Program. In return for their scholarship support, students contribute to the elevation of the condition of their country through public service work with grassroots organizations. The school year in the Congo lasts from September 15 - July 15.

With your generous support, Friends of Congo has been able to provide scholarships to Congolese students for the past three years. Our goal for the 2008/09 school year, is to provide scholarships to 1,000 students. We count on your participation in this effort to support the education of Congolese students who are committed to the development and reconstruction of their country.

Should you wish to receive a profile of the Lumumba Scholars it will be provided upon request. Any amount of contribution will help to meet our goal of supporting 1,000 students.