(above) “The love my peers and teachers have shown me—the collaboration—it’s all changed my life,” says Rosine, who studied tailoring at the Bacongo Vocational Training Centre in Congo (Brazzaville)

The United Nations marks November 25 as International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, a day to raise awareness of the impact of gender-based violence on women and girls and call for action to help end this ongoing human rights issue.

From emergency shelters in the Caribbean to group therapy programs in South America to vocational training programs in Africa, The Salvation Army strives to combat gender-based violence through services that teach, counsel and empower. 

In Congo (Brazzaville), The Salvation Army’s Bacongo Vocational Training Centre has become a vessel for hope in the community. 

“We wanted to build a centre for young, unmarried women,” says Colonel Brigitte Bamanabio, territorial president of women’s ministries in the Congo (Brazzaville) Territory. “Women are suffering, and we wanted to do the work to help them stand.” 

Since opening its doors in 2017, this centre has provided more than 150 vulnerable women with training in literacy and vocational skills, including tailoring, hair braiding, beauty care and baking.

Rosine is just one of the many whose life was transformed through this centre. Growing up with a single mother, the family struggled to make ends meet.

“Due to our financial situation, my sister and I couldn’t go to school,” she says.

They also lived in a dangerous neighbourhood, where violence against women was prevalent. One night, Rosine’s sister was assaulted and the family made the decision to run away, with little to no money for survival. 

Once settled in their new community, Rosine needed to find a way to make a living. That’s when a friend told her about the Bacongo Vocational Training Centre.

“I was told The Salvation Army has a good centre in Bacongo,” she says. “They were teaching young people how to tailor.”

Having always dreamed of being a designer, Rosine decided to make the eight-kilometre walk to Bacongo, where she explained her story to the principal. Despite not being able to afford tuition, she was accepted into the tailoring program. 

“The head of the training centre told me, ‘Continue to study. You can pay when you have the money,’ ” says Rosine. 

At the centre, she received instruction in literacy and math, along with sewing, pattern making and garment construction. But Rosine’s journey wasn’t always easy. It was thanks to the support of her peers and teachers that she marched on. 

“There were times when I lost hope,” she says. “I was going to school on foot and when I reached there, I would be so tired. Sometimes I thought about giving up, but the head of Bacongo kept encouraging me and would even give me money for transportation.”

The training centre doesn’t just provide training—they also provide spiritual, moral and compassionate support. From building a daycare centre at the school for the students who are single mothers, to giving beauty and tailoring kits for graduating students, this school is a safe space for women to build each other up, to learn, to be encouraged and to be prayed for. 

“The love my peers and teachers have shown me—the collaboration—it’s all changed my life,” says Rosine. She dreams of opening her own tailoring business and hopes to pay it forward someday.

“I want to pass on my learning to other women in my community who never had a chance to go to school,” she says. 

Through the support of the training centre staff, the Congo-Brazzaville Territory and donors across Canada and Bermuda, vulnerable women such as Rosine can rise above generational violence and look toward a bright and promising future. Gender-based violence is rooted in gender inequality, and one way to end violence against women is by giving them the tools and resources for independence. 

The Bacongo Vocational Training Centre continues to change women’s lives and act as a catalyst for hope. To support this centre, visit salvationarmy. ca/giftsofhope and give to “vocational training.” 

Kathy Nguyen is the resource/media co-ordinator in the international development department.

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