Idjwi Island Education Fund

Our Mission

The Idjwi Island Education Fund is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with the mission of providing a better school for children in the village of Buhumba on Idjwi Island in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Idjwi Island, located in Lake Kivu on the eastern border of the DRC, has seen a dramatic increase in its population in recent years, much of which is the result of refugees fleeing violence in Rwanda and the DRC. A substantial number of these new residents are children, including many orphans. Approximately 400 children attend the existing primary school. This makeshift school is overcrowded, has a leaky roof, and does not provide desks or even books for the students.

In 2009, Them Nyamunongo, who grew up on Idjwi and now works in Washington, D.C., returned to visit family on the island. During his stay, he gave gifts to children that he met in Buhumba. As he spent time with the children, he learned about the extremely poor conditions at the school, including how it has become overcrowded due to the increase in refugees and orphans. The children told him that their true wish was for a school with a roof so that they were not sent home every time that it rained. When Them returned to Washington, D.C., he and his wife, Safi, approached a friend who is a director at a local preschool. From this meeting in late 2009, the Idjwi Island Education Fund was formed.

In just over eighteen months, the Idjwi Island Education Fund has obtained property in Buhumba for the new school (which was donated by Them's family), met with and conducted a needs assessment with the director of the existing school, and provided some interim support for the facilities at the existing school. The Fund has recruited a board of directors that includes professionals with experience in international development and project management. The Fund has also conducted a series of fundraising events through which it has raised more than $15,000, in gifts ranging from $20 to 1,000, from more than 100 different donors. With this foundation in place, the Fund is intensifying its efforts on the design program for the new school, interviewing representatives of other non-governmental organizations with experience with similar projects in the region, and identifying local organizations to collaborate in the building process. The ultimate goal of this effort is to provide improved facilities, desks, books, and a safe-haven for more than 400 primary school children in this isolated community.