Education And Production Support For The Pigmies

Turkey’s first contact with the Pigmy people living in difficult conditions far from the modern world in Central Africa, was made by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency Directorate.

Supplies were provided to FEMODER, a non-governmental organization that gives education and production support to Pigmies, within the scope of TİKA’s project in the Democratic Republic of Congo. 3 thousand Pigmies will benefit from the project to provide women with literacy courses and men with brick production training. The first contact between the Pigmies living in the rainforests of Central Africa in difficult conditions far from the modern world, and Turkey was made possible by TİKA.

Contact was established between the Pigmies who live in the rainforests of Central Africa in primitive conditions who are generally no taller than 1.50 meters, and Turkey. The Pigmies, who live in Africa within the boundaries of the Congo, The Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Central Africa far from other communities not only have to struggle with life threatening diseases like AIDS and Ebola but also face malnutrition.

Pigmies are communities, which are in the most difficult situation from a socio-economic aspect in the countries where they live and they do not benefit from any services provided by the government including formal education. TİKA has established cooperation with the non-governmental organization called FEMODER, which aims to teach Pigmies living in the East Kasai region of the Democratic Republic of Congo how to farm and achieve a vocation and to teach women how to read and write.

The stationary supplies, computers, computer equipment, various agricultural machines, sewing machines for vocational training and the machines and equipment used in brick production were presented to the Democratic Republic of Congo Minister of Labor and Social Security Modeste Bahati Lukwebo by the Republic of Turkey Kinshasa Ambassador Bekir Uysal and TİKA officials.

Democratic Republic of Congo Minister of Labor and Social Security Modeste Bahati Lukwebo who explained that the integration of the Pigmy communities, which live under difficult conditions, to civilization had been disrupted because of civil war and that they would now be speeding up the efforts to help the remaining Pigmies to adapt to the rest of the country and thanked TİKA for its contributions.

Women will be taught how to read and write and men will be taught how to produce bricks 3
thousand Pigmies will benefit from the TİKA supported project of FEMODER, a non-governmental that works to help Pigmies living under the countries harshest conditions. Within the scope of this project directed at helping the community achieve a source of income, women will raise their education level by learning how to read and write and will also gain a profession through sewing.

The brick production and bricklaying courses made available to the men will enable them to both construct modern and safe buildings and to gain brick production as a vocation to help them become employed. By providing the Pigmies with agricultural equipment and machines it is intended that the community which gets by on hunting and gathering will learn how to farm and therefore contribute to obtaining a regular source of nourishment.