When conflict erupts, dreams are often the first casualties. Since February 16, 2025, the city of Bukavu in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been under the control of the M23 militia. The resulting collapse of essential services, ongoing insecurity, and economic stranglehold has turned daily life into a constant struggle for survival. Bukavu, once bustling with resilience, is now described by local voices as “abandoned to hunger and neglect.” Banks are closed, food is scarce and gathering more than a handful of people bears the risks of being shot on the spot.
The humanitarian situation is rapidly deteriorating. Food supply chains have broken down, pushing prices beyond what most families can afford. Schools and community spaces have shut their doors. The risk of violence is ever-present. Local businesses are being squeezed under new rebel-imposed taxes, while children are increasingly vulnerable to recruitment, abuse, and trauma.
Amid this reality, our SINA Community in Bukavu, known as SENTA (Social Entrepreneurship Academy), had to make an extremely difficult decision. Continuing operations in the city meant exposing our scholars and team to significant and immediate risk. Their safety—and their potential—could no longer be guaranteed.
But at SINA, we don’t walk away from challenges. We walk through them, and transform them.
Thanks to swift and committed support, the core SENTA team began preparing a safe and temporary relocation to Uganda. Within weeks, a secure space was identified in Kampala. Now, 20 scholars have safely arrived and are beginning a new chapter of their empowerment journey. Their curriculum has been adapted to respond to the trauma and disruption they’ve experienced—starting with personal healing, emotional recovery, and building new community, before progressing into social entrepreneurship and regenerative action.
This is not just about relocation. It is refusing to let conflict define a generation’s future. It is about demonstrating that even in the face of collapse, dignity, learning, and transformation can prevail.
SENTA’s scholars carry with them the seeds of change. In Kampala, these seeds will be nurtured into action. Social enterprises will be built from lived experience. Solutions will emerge that matter—both for those who create them and for the communities they will eventually serve.
Turning challenges into opportunities isn’t a slogan for us. It is a way of being. It is the belief that no one is too broken to start again, and no crisis is too large to find within it the potential for growth and regeneration.
To all who stood with us and made this journey possible: thank you for choosing action over fear, and possibility over despair!
