Over the past three years, thousands of you have decided to sponsor a child through Covenant Kids Congo, and with your help, the Gemena community in northwest Congo is on its way to a more hopeful future.
Clean water springs from new wells, as families fill buckets with water that won’t make their children sick. Children go to one of the three new schools in the area, where they study and pursue their dreams. Parents have learned to make the most nutritious food to help their children grow healthy and strong, and they’ve found new economic opportunities, selling handmade goods in the market and saving funds for the future.
Covenant Kids Congo powered by World Vision is making a powerful difference. See it for yourself. Watch the Impact of Sponsorship video below.
We thank you deeply for your partnership in this transformation, especially as we look to the year that lies ahead. Now, 24,000 people have access to clean water in Gemena, thanks to new water towers and other sources—a number to be raised to to 250,000 over a 15-year span. A community nutrition program has helped 675 malnourished children return to a normal, healthy weight. And 75 percent of children have received full immunizations. That’s only a snapshot of some of the many new changes in Gemena.
There is still much left to do in a country known for extreme poverty (the DR Congo falls near the bottom of the Human Development Index). About 1,700 children are currently waiting to be sponsored through Covenant Kids Congo, and we hope to find sponsors for as many of them as possible this year.
2016 is also an election year in the Congo. Since it seems unlikely that the current president will give up power, some fear that this year might bring violence (read more here). Please pray for peace in Congo during these tense times.
As you begin the New Year, we leave you with this challenge—to join us in our 2016 efforts, and help find sponsors for more children in the Congo.
Perhaps you can host another Hope Sunday at your church, ask friends to donate to Covenant Kids Congo for your birthday, or share your sponsorship story with someone you know. Whatever you decide to do this year, we’d love to hear about it. Send us a note at covenantkidscongo@covchurch.org. And many blessings to you in this New Year!
Sending you our deepest thanks! Pictured: Covenant Kids Congo project leader Donn Engebretson and project manager Catherine Knarr
