Mama Lufuma

Mama Lufuma is a Congolese-Flemish non-profit organisation that supports single mothers in the south of Matadi, a large port city in Congo DR. The project, which they have been running for 20 years now, ranges from cooking and sewing lessons to learning PC skills and even shelter for those who need it. All these activities obviously require some basic necessities, such as water and electricity. Less obvious is the provision of these. Although the relief centre and accompanying classrooms are connected to both the water and electricity networks, these are hardly reliable and even dangerous. Many blackouts and a difficult journey to drinkable water make life unnecessarily difficult. It is with this question in mind that Mama Lufuma approached Humasol.

The goal of our project is independence from the current ‘supply’. We try to achieve this in a sustainable way. With the help of solar panels, we are installing a complete internal electricity network to enable all the activities to run smoothly. On the other hand, we are using the solar energy generated to power a pump and in this way bypass the dangerous slope to the water source, which is used by some 5,000 people every day. A sanitary block will also be connected to make this basic facility available. However, sustainability goes beyond green energy. An important aspect is therefore to transfer the necessary knowledge to the local community so that they can be truly independent.