The Democratic Republic of Congo is the former Belgian Congo. Located in the center of Africa, it is the second largest nation in Africa and third largest in population with something over 50 million people.
Today the infrastructure is minimal. In the entire province there are no paved roads, no power grid, even in the cities, no phone system except a couple cell towers serving a very small area, no post office or mail system and no functional bank. Indeed many roads that were functional in the pre-1960 colonial era are now just walking trails.
Constance has a growing history of involvement in the Congo. Currently we are engaged in several key ministries.
1. The Tandala Hospital. This is the Evangelical Free Church of Congo (CECU) hospital and has a string of 30 rural Health Center clinics. The 175-bed hospital is run by five Congolese physicians and about 130 staff caring for thousands of people every week. A strong spiritual ministry led by the hospital chaplain is seeing many patients come to the Lord and return to their villages and joining the local churches.
Short-term teams with skills in the following areas are needed to help train/mentor the Congolese hospital staff:
Primary care physicians, family physicians, pediatricians, internal medicine physicians, OB/GYN specialists, general and specialty surgeons.
Anesthesiologists and/or nurse anesthetists, medical technologists: teach/train in the medical lab
Ophthalmologists/Optometrist: work with existing optometrist, assess needs of this dept.
Dentists: train/teach/mentor, Nurses, Pharmacists, Hospital administrators
Physical Therapists: To assess need and help develop a P.T. department. This person would also work with the Elikya center in building equipment for P.T.
Other medical related skills
2. The Elikya Center. God has raised up this Center to train widows, teenage orphans, the disabled and single moms in life skills and occupations—making soap, sewing, carpentry, gardening, raising animals, agriculture and a strong emphasis on spiritual training as well. They come from all parts of the Ubangi Province to learn. Then after 6-9 months they are prepared to go home to their villages to apply the trade they have learned, train others and have a life skill to support themselves and their families.
Short-term teams with skills in the following areas are needed:
Teach English
Teach Computer Skills
Developing curriculum for the different courses (sewing, masonry, carpentry, agriculture, accounting skills, reading, Bible, etiquette).
Carpentry skills – Possibly teach a class on specific items that can be produced and sold at market.
Sewing skills – items that could sell – teaching “quality control”
Biblical worldview material and training of those who can teach others.
If you have an interest in gaining further information on serving with a short-term team in Congo, please complete the Interest Form.