Indigenous Women for Health and Equality (IWHE-NGO) is an independent, non-profit organization that is apolitical, non-denominational, and free from ethnic, racial, or tribal affiliations. It was established in 2020 by a group of Indigenous women and girls to address their lack of empowerment and the gender inequalities they face within local and national communities.

IWHE-NGO was founded to find answers to the following questions:

• How can Indigenous women and girls actively and politically participate in decision-making processes that positively impact their futures?
• How can community members be educated to equip younger generations of human rights defenders with a culture that promotes Indigenous women and girls in South Kivu province?

IWHE-NGO has begun to address these questions by seeking to understand the community’s perception of the lack of empowerment and the gender inequalities present in the areas where Indigenous women and girls live.

Although they are the original inhabitants of the equatorial forests of the Great Lakes region of Africa, Indigenous Peoples are virtually invisible in official terms.

Subjected to ongoing discrimination that leads to poverty, unemployment, and limited access to education and healthcare, their situation is further exacerbated by a lack of recognition of their struggles by communities and institutions. It is extremely difficult, often even impossible, to find data and statistics about Indigenous communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC); and it is even harder to find information regarding the situation of Indigenous women and girls.

IWHE-NGO’s goal is to contribute to achieving effective gender equality and empowering Indigenous women and girls through:

• Promoting maternal, child, sexual, reproductive, mental, and nutritional health for Indigenous women living in our intervention areas;
• Advocating for the rights and human dignity of Indigenous women through female leadership, combating gender-based violence, and promoting sexual and reproductive rights; and
• Fostering the economic empowerment of Indigenous women through female entrepreneurship.