Focus on Mission: Democratic Republic of Congo

Focus on Mission is a changing feature that introduces the health and development work of some of the PC(USA)’s global partners:  their history, their accomplishments and their needs. 

The historic church at the Luebo mission station has welcomed worshippers for over 100 years. Photo by Bob Ellis.


See photos of the church at work in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

For more than 100 years the Presbyterian Church has been engaged in mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a sprawling central African nation that is still struggling to overcome a history of colonial oppression and recurring civil strife. Presbyterian missionaries in the late 1800s were pioneers in evangelizing the vast Kasai region and in working to protect the Congolese against the brutal practices of the rubber industry and the slave trade. Mission stations sprang up in the early years of the 20th century, with teams of missionary evangelists, teachers, translators and health care providers. At the peak of the Presbyterian mission presence there were more than 200 Presbyterian missionaries serving in the country then known as Zaire.

The PC(USA) facilitates the work of two partners in DRC: The Presbyterian Community of Kinshasa, based in the capital city, and the Presbyterian Community of Congo. Health and development work remains an essential ministry with our partners. Parasitic and infectious diseases and malnutrition contribute to a life expectancy of less than 50 years.  Less than 15 percent of the population has access to safe water. Health services are provided through hospitals and community health projects based at five of the historic mission stations: Bibanga, Bulape, Luebo, Lubondai and Mbujimayi, and at the flagship institution, the Christian Medical Institute of the Kasai and Good Shepherd Hospital near the city of Kananga.

Mission personnel in DRC work to build the capacity of Congolese health care personnel through training and mentoring while also providing direct patient care. Dr. Michael Haninger trains medical residents at Good Shepherd Hospital and serves as an OB/GYN physician. Nancy Haninger, R.N., is engaged in a range of community health projects, including nutritional rehabilitation and village health worker education.  Dr. John Fletcher, a surgeon, and Gwenda Fletcher have returned to DRC where they were in mission service in the 1990s. Working throughout DRC is regional health consultant Dr. Larry Sthreshley, who grew up there. 

Support for the PC(USA)’s mission in DRC is broad and deep among U.S. Presbyterians, reflecting the strong history of mission involvement and DRC’s critical long-term needs.  Presbyterian Women awarded a 2008 Birthday Offering grant to strengthen ministries in education and nutrition, and PW groups actively support the income-generating Palm Project. Congregations, presbyteries and the Congo Mission Network are engaged in supportive partnerships. The International Health & Development Office and the Medical Benevolence Foundation provide funding for specific projects that address the priority needs of our partners.

Gifts from U.S. Presbyterians may be directed to projects in DRC through Extra Commitment Opportunity accounts:

423102: Mbujimayi  Christian Medical Center


520002: Presbyterian Community of Kinshasa Clinics


864826: Kitchen Gardens, Kinshasa


581502: Luebo Hospital


862762:Lubondai Hospital

052050: Empowering Congolese Women

319702: Bibanga Hospital

319902: Bulape Hospital & Community Health

320202: IMCK Good Shepherd Hospital

320402: IMCK Community Health

320902: IMCK Nursing & Laboratory Technician Schools