The Centre Pour Handicapés Kikesa is a school which was founded in 1968 in a district of Kinshasa by three young Congolese who had recently returned from their studies in Belgium.  They want to support the integration of people with disabilities in the Congolese society by providing them vocational training. The three main goals of VZW Kikesa are therefore: 

-Physical rehabilitation

-Education and vocational training 

-Socio-professional reintegration 

For more information, check their website: https://aicpkk.wixsite.com/kikesa 

The Livulu neighbourhood is located on the road to the University of Kinshasa (UNIKIN). Historically, it was inhabited by UNIKIN professors. The topography of this neighbourhood exposes it strongly to erosion problems during the rainy season. The Centre Pour Handicapés Kikesa has been located in this neighbourhood since 1968. The goal of VZW Kikesa is to provide professional training to people with disabilities and in this way help them to integrate into the Congolese society. Disabled people are often without training and thus without a stable income. By diversifying the productivity of people with disabilities, through training, they would not be confined to the traditional sectors of shoemaking or sewing. The legal protection of this population, although evolving, remains very precarious. Within this group we also deplore the differences in access to solutions depending on gender, and VZW Kikesa believes that better training would enable everyone to be better equipped to participate in society. 

The goal of VZW Kikesa is to extend their activities within the Livulu community, to reach a larger number of people and raise awareness of the global problems they face and the collective solutions to be brought. They want to show the possible complementarities between non-disabled and disabled people. Therefore, joint initiatives between non-disabled and disabled people through reflection groups have to be stimulated.

The fight against erosion, causing additional obstacles for disabled people, is another challenge to be tackled. An adequate water management research would not only provide better travelling conditions but also offer drinkable and affordable water. 

The preparatory work consists of:

-A water management study in the context of the local economy

-Involve people with disabilities in the reflection and development of the project

The on-site work contains:

-Sharing data on the local context with Unikin students

-Communication with the local population (both non-disabled and disabled)

-Feasibility study of different projects: surface water harvesting (mobility, water, electricity, waste)

-Field survey / research

-Planting trees in the context of mitigating climate impact at the level of the community of Livulu