Samaritan Sister Nikki Nixon

On the first episode of the Samaritan Sister podcast, I interviewed Noella Coursaris Musunka, Founder of Malaika.

Founded in 2007 by Noella Coursaris Musunka, a Congolese/Cypriot model and humanitarian, Malaika is a nonprofit, grassroots organization with a mission to empower Congolese girls and their communities through education and health programs. The foundation operates in Kalebuka, in the Southeastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Built in 2011, the Malaika School is a free, accredited school that provides a comprehensive and high quality education to 252 girls. Our goal is to build the leadership capacity of each student so that she is empowered to give back to her community and has a positive, long-term impact on the future of the DRC.

The curriculum is structured around daily classes in French and English, on subjects including math, science, information technology, health and civic education. Art, music, theater and physical education are also a key part of the robust educational programming.

Great care is taken to cultivate the leadership potential of the students, from involvement in the Girl Scouts to field trips and community service projects, such as planting trees or teaching the community about malaria prevention.

Additionally, each girl receives two healthy meals a day - often her only ones. The Malaika School is 100% powered by solar energy. The newest addition is an e-library, which houses both print and ebooks on Android tablets, giving the girls access to the broad world surrounding them.

To learn more about Malaika and help out, you can visit http://malaika.org/

Follow Malaika on Twitter at @MalaikaDRC and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/MalaikaDRC

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