Dear Friends,

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has endured political and social turmoil since it was colonised by Belgium.  In the troubles after independence Colonel Mobutu Sese Seko seized, and held onto, power for 32 years until he was deposed by Laurent Kabila's rebellion in 1997.  The 1998 insurrection by rebels linked to Rwanda and Uganda triggered a war involving six other nations.  The UN accused warring sides of prolonging the conflict as they looted natural resources.

The human toll of the fighting - often called Africa's 'First World War' - has been catastrophic, with more than four million dead since 1998.  Around 1,200 people die each day as a direct or indirect result of the conflict - more than half of them children.  Many have suffered horrific abuse, including rape and sexual slavery by armed groups. 

This situation has impoverished the nation and traumatised children.  Today it is estimated that more than five million children are still not getting an education and more than six million children aged 12-17 years old have never set foot in a school.  The social and economic implications of this further down the line are very concerning.  In order for this country to recover from the devastating effects or war and distabilisation, there is a need to effectively educate and improve the infrastructure of communities. 

In 2003, I undertook a visit for the first time to the DRC and what I witnessed was enough to make me come back to the UK and start a business to help the funding of this school project which I started putting together in 2006 and so MenelikMusic and Menelikeducation Ltd were born. 

MenelikMusic is a volunteer run organisation that regularly host world music events in Cambridge (UK).  The money raised at these events, helps support our schools and other community projects which currently concentrates in deprived areas around Kinshasa the capital city. 

MenelikEducation Ltd is the first organisation of its kind in the DRC, heralding a major shift in the way humanitarian assistance is provided. We help Congolese people improve their education system by encouraging systemic change instead of relying solely on foreign aid and we form effective and equal partnerships between OUr organisation and those with whom we work.  Our agenda is ambitious: we want to break down the barriers that hold people back, releasing talent and expanding opportunities to communities living in some of the deprived areas of the capital city we are seeking to help.  Our broad remit covers education and equality in the areas of age, disability, gender, religion or belief, and sexual orientation as well as the protection and promotion of human rights.  For more information about our school project, please contact us.

Building partnership in Kinshasa

MenelikEducation Ltd and the Groupe Scolaire Lembo officially opened the doors of the Lembo-Menelik International Academy in September 2008.   The academy has since formed partnership with Ecole Laique de Kintambo, an abandoned state run school and Ecole St Georges, a catholic run school.  Ecole St Georges is strategically placed and that is where the clinic and our IT projects will be based.  Both these projects will be accessible to all the schools in the partnership and the community.  

New development

The Partnrship Clinic:  We are currently setting up a community clinic in one of our schools and so far have a part-time doctor, lab-technician, 2 nurses and 2 beds and limited material.  We are looking for the opportunity to develop this scheme further, increase our capacity and make the clinic accessible to all our students, teachers and staff and the community by and large. 

Obviously, this is a new initiative but we have learned a lot from others who have done the same thing. This project is and remains completely clear of governmental involvement. Having been working in the DRC since 2006, we have learned a lot about how to make soft landings so that we do not antagonize the local community and how to maintain the clinic and the academy and the schools in the partnership in a self-sustaining way. 

Our desire is to have our clinic treat everyone who needs treatment and charge only what the patient can pay. The clinic in the school is up and running but urgently needs essential equipment, medical supply and more. We would like to make an appeal to ask doctors in Cambridge (UK) or elsewhere to come and help us develop this clinic further and turn it into the best equipped and managed clinic in the DRC.  Good Congolese doctors are extremely rare due to local conditions but with your help, we can help turn things around and use this opportunity to train and coach medical students here in the DRC. 

We hope as the clinic gains recognition and visibility that some of the people who can afford the full charges will go to that clinic and pay what they would pay out of the country. This will help support the more unfortunate patients who do not have the resources to pay, especially children.

Finally, I know times are hard here in the UK with the financial crisis and so on and so forth, but please consider this:  every time there is a major financial crisis in the developed world, the effect of the crisis in countries such as the Democratic of Congo is even deadlier. With just £10 we can pay the school fees of 2 children for a month.

All the best

Theodore Menelik-Mfuni

Founder of MenelikEducation & Music