Empower Congo Women is a public charity dedicated to helping women survivors of sexual violence heal, rebuild their lives, and become economically self-sufficient.
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is the worst place in the world to be a woman. Literally hundreds of thousands of women and girls have been systematically gang raped and tortured over the last 12 years in eastern Congo. Even worse, they have lost the protection of their husbands and been cast out of their community to fend for themselves.
Many of these women flee to Bukavu where they receive medical treatment. But medical care only scratches the surface of need. After leaving hospital, these women face the hard reality of supporting themselves and their children without job skills. Most were subsistence farmers who can never return home. Vulnerable and often exploited, they need our help to survive.
The mission of Empower Congo Women (ECW) is to support women survivors and other Congolese women trapped in poverty while they become emotionally and financially self-sufficient. We define self-sufficiency as having a steady income, which allows clean water, at least two meals per day, safe shelter, medical care, and school fees for their children. To this end, ECW provides job skills training and microloans, as well as technical support for indigenous projects through product development, marketing strategies, and entrepreneurial training.
Empower Congo Women also addresses the emotional well-being of these women by providing trauma counseling, health education and family planning.
