Democratic Republic of Congo
The second largest country of Africa, full of paradoxes. On one hand, it is rich in natural resources (including cobalt, copper, coltan, crude oil, diamonds, gold); on the other hand, its inhabitants are among the poorest in the world. For decades, the DRC has been suffering from prolonged conflicts that have led to one of the most severe humanitarian crises in the world.
Overview:
- 77% of the population live in extreme poverty for less than $1.90 a day
- 16% of the country’s population, i.e. over 13 million people, require immediate humanitarian assistance
- 13,6 million people are deprived of access to safe water sources and proper sanitary and hygienic facilities
- numerous outbreaks of deadly diseases, including measles, malaria, cholera and Ebola
- about 10% of all malaria deaths in sub-Saharan Africa occurred here
Our hospital carries over
27 000
medical procedures per year
We treat about
7000
malaria patients every year
Our midwives delivered about
953
babies in 2023
09.01.2020
The first picture is one of the first ones we shared with you when Good Factory launched six years ago.
This newborn arrived in our hospital after someone abandoned him in the bush. He was found by a couple of kind strangers, who heard the cries of a baby and set out to save him. The little boy had a fever and a cough and was transferred to Ntamugenga. Doctor John gave him medicine, while the married couple who found him decided he would stay with them. They named him Dieudonné (“Gift of God”) after our Teodor. They promised they would provide him with a home and the love that he never received from his own parents. Other than that, they weren’t able to provide him with much more, as they themselves struggled to make ends meet.
Following a few weeks of treatment and observation, we sent the little boy home with his new mother. We provided her with milk, hygiene products and food supplies.
Six years have passed and Dieudonné is now a healthy, energetic boy full of life. His foster parents are thankful for the help they received from us and recently paid us a visit. The second picture, taken moments ago, shows the six year old standing proud in his school uniform. Your support is funding his education and continued medical care. We regularly check in with him to make sure he is doing ok.
Stories like this have happy endings when the vulnerable and helpless encounter good people. There are many children like Dieudonné. He was fortunate to find wonderful foster parents, and a new foster family – the hospital’s staff and sisters, as well as all of you!
We are sharing this story with you to show that our hospital staff and sisters continue to support and care for the people we take in. Our patients aren’t just numbers to us. We support them for as long as they need us, even when their medical treatment – which is the main reason we are here – is long over.
We hope to be able to tell you many more similar stories and encourage you to join us along the way. The best way of getting involved is by signing up for the High Five! program and making small payments of 5 PLN. Just 5 PLN – yes, that’s enough! But make sure to set up regular payments, ideally once a week. We will continue to showcase the amazing work we are able to accomplish thanks to your High Fives!
