Who we help ...
We support work and drive accountability with ministries that are effectively serving people in Jesus’ name:
- spreading His Word
- strengthening His Church.
Our partners are serving communities in western CAR, and the surrounding area. They are like-minded groups who align with our statement of faith.
Kolongo, as a new ministry, has officially begun partnership with one ministry in CAR, ISFP.
We are currently in dialog with other ministries, including a Film Evangelism ministry. We will post these partnerships as they develop.
Our Current Project
Nursing school in Gamboula, CAR:
Institut Supérieur de Formation des Paramédicaux (ISFP)
About ISFP
The ISFP offers a 3-year university-level training program, equivalent to that of a Registered Nurse in the US. With an alarming shortage of physicians in CAR, nurses play a vital role in the country’s health care system. A quality nursing education is essential for equipping graduates to be able to serve alone in many of the remote health centers.
Students also take courses in biblical studies and theology so they can grow their personal faith and to help them see their profession as a ministry.
(In the CAR, “nurses” do many activities that doctors do in the US; diagnosing and providing primary treatment, dispensing drugs, and doing basic procedures. Much of the work done by US nurses are done by family members.)
Students live in campus housing, receive course syllabi, textbooks, computers, and basic nursing equipment for practicing (stethoscope, thermometer, etc.). The school features a new skills lab and students are able to do the majority of their clinical hours at the Gamboula Hospital right next door.
Due to limitations of space, teachers, and materials ISFP trains one cohort of 30 students at a time. The current class of 30 are in their 2nd year of the 3-year program.
A Stellar Reputation
Their educational supports and the theoretical courses have helped ISFP gain a nationwide reputation in CAR for producing knowledgeable, capable and compassionate nurses. Graduates say,
“We are different from most of the other nurses we work with, because you taught us at the ISFP, not just to be good nurses, but to work from our hearts.”
The ISFP graduates are highly sought after when the finish their training. ISFP alumni are scattered far and wide in CAR, as well as internationally.
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- Employers appreciate them because they are well-trained, knowledgeable and capable, and have a good work ethic.
- Many further their education becoming physicians, dentists, anesthesiologists, and the like, while others manage rural health centers as the sole health care provider.
- Most of the ISFP graduates quickly find themselves in leadership positions in the places that they work.
- A great number have leadership positions with large NGOs such as Doctors Without Borders, Red Cross, and World Vision.
How Kolongo helps
The cost of the ISFP’s hallmark education is $2000/year. That is a cost very few students can afford in its entirety—which is where Kolongo Ministries comes in.
Kolongo Ministries heavily subsidizes the cost of the nursing school to cover what school fees cannot.
