Democratic Republic of Congo

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self-employment, a shock alternative to forced marriages

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In the province of Kasai-Oriental, as in other regions of the DRC, forced marriage, although prohibited by law, is still a deeply entrenched practice.  In return for paying a dowry to their parents, young girls, whether they want to or not, are forced into marriage.  This irrevocably changes the course of the lives of these too-young wives and mothers.  The Don Bosco Mazzarello centre in Mbuji Mayi is confronted with this reality.

“We have several girls in our training centre who have broken away from their families because of a forced marriage”, explains Pétronille Ngama, director of the Don Bosco community in Mbuji Mayi.  “It’s often poverty that pushes parents to marry off their daughters at a young age.  Not only do they receive a dowry from the suitor, but it is also the in-laws who take care of the bride after the wedding.  So there is one less mouth to feed.”  The impact on the lives of these young girls is immense.  Early pregnancies and household chores often force them to abandon their hopes of studying.

Advanced training courses, application centre and entrepreneurship

“At Mbuji Mayi, we are clearly focusing on vocational training to enable young girls to become financially independent.”  The aim is to enable them to find work as soon as they leave school, whether through advanced training courses or self-entrepreneurship courses.

“This year we supported several student projects, including the creation of three sewing workshops and a small agricultural business.  In the latter case, we enabled two young girls to use our land to grow their first crop so that they could sell it and raise some money to buy their own plot of land.”  This is just one example of the “school-business” approach adopted by this VIA Don Bosco partner centre, which helps students build up capital during their training before going out into the world of work.

Raising awareness to slowly change attitudes

Some traditions are hard-wired, but Pétronille Ngama’s determination is just as strong.  “If parents have decided to give their daughter in marriage, it is hard to change their minds. So we try to push back the deadline by insisting on the importance of their daughter finishing her studies so that she can find work and contribute to the family’s finances.  We hope this will make her parents reconsider their decision.”

At the same time, the school’s educational team is organising film screenings to inform young people and their parents about the damage this practice can do to society.  “Little by little, attitudes are changing.  These forced marriages often have the effect of perpetuating the cycle of poverty for young girls, when instead, they should be allowed to take their rightful place in Congolese society.”