Uvira
Uvira is a small eastern province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, located near to the borders of Burundi and Rwanda. This region of the DRC has high levels of poverty and malnutrition caused by conflict in the area. These conflicts have destabilised the region.
CEDAC has partnered with the Nguvu ya Uvira (The power of Uvira in Swahili) foundation. Together we are working to overcome these problems and currently have two projects in operation.
Combat contre le Kwashiorkor
The first is Combat contre le Kwashiorkor which is a project that we have undertaken to combat malnutrition. The malnutrition program has taken in 29 moderately to severely malnourished children, of which seven have completely recovered. Children and their parents come to a local red cross clinic – with whom we have partnered – and sit down to eat a nutritious, protein-rich porridge. Two sessions were held per week, which will increase to three per week in April.
Free doctor’s consultations and medicines are also provided by the foundation, as children with malnutrition often suffer from other maladies due to a weakened immune system.
When aid is distributed by large NGOs a lot of it is taken and sold on the market. The method in this program of providing the food direct to the mouths of malnourished children cuts out this possibility. We hope to have a completely new intake by the end of April.
The Ligue de Basket Uvira
The second program is The Ligue de Basket Uvira (Uvira Basketball League) staged matches between youth teams and a newly formed veterans’ team in the lead up to the launch of the league on 6 April. These are in addition to the weekly training sessions held. Over forty players were registered for the re-structured three-team league. This project helps to build participant engagement within the wider community.
Clear rules and coach/referee/player codes of conduct were drafted to ensure sportsmanship and fair play. We are in contact with NBA Africa about potential support.
