Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – The new “Anuarite Centre” for the recovery of the girls on the street will be officially inaugurated in Kinshasa, in the district of Tshangu. Already in operation since the beginning of the year, the project, sponsored by the Don Guanella Society, Comic Relief and War Child, will have an affect on about 1,000 girls aged between 6 and 18 years over the next three years. It will take care of young mothers and their children, and take care of their basic needs such as health, literacy and schooling. There are 20 staff involved in the project: instructors, nurses and teachers. The facility offers girls the opportunity to take a shower, wash their clothes, eat a meal, while in the afternoon instructors have time to listen, to identify problems and set up future activities. The centre, on two floors, also has a small infirmary on the ground floor where girls can be accommodated for the night who are too sick. There is also a teacher, a kitchen and a dining room. Upstairs there is a large room for literacy, the office for instructors, a place for discussions and a room reserved for young girls and mothers with children who can use this space at night.
The centre is dedicated to Blessed Anuarite Nengapeta, the Congolese religious, well-known by the local people. Sr Maria Clementina Anuarite Nengapeta, was born to pagan parents in 1939, on the outskirts of Wamba (Congo). She was later baptised in the Catholic Church with her mother and sisters. Upon her heroic and glorious death, she was considered “the Maria Goretti of the African continent.” John Paul II proclaimed her Blessed on 15 August, 1985, during his Apostolic Visit to Africa. (AP) (18/2/2011 Agenzia Fides)
