Who we are
History of Caritas Gikongoro
ORGANIZATIONAL BACKGROUND
Caritas Gikongoro was created in 1993 after the creation of Catholic Diocese of Gikongoro on
30 March 1992 by division of the Diocese of Butare. Catholic Diocese of Gikongoro is a portion
of the Universal Catholic Church and an Association based on religion with legal personality by
Ministerial Order No. 296/05 of October 1, 1992. The Bishop is responsible for all activities
realized within his Diocese as an institution legally recognized by the State.
Caritas Gikongoro is by nature one of the services of Catholic Diocese of Gikongoro, responsible
for humanitarian action in favor of the poorest and people in distress. Currently it carries out its
activities in all the 19 parishes of the Diocese Gikongoro. Its structures are General Assembly,
Board of Directors, Committees of Parishes, Centrals, and Basic Ecclesial Communities. Caritas
Gikongoro has three departments: Department of Socio-Charitable Works, Health and
Development. Its office is located is Rwanda, Southern Province, Nyamagabe District, Gasaka
sector, and Nyamugari cell.
Within the diocese, Caritas Gikongoro collaborates with other diocesan Services and
Commissions such as Economat General Gikongoro, Justice and Peace Commission (CDJP), and
Diocesan Service of Catholic Schools. In addition, it has various local, national, and international
partners. in realizing its mission, Caritas Gikongoro covers the entire Nyamagabe District, ⅔ of
Nyaruguru District and a small portion of Huye, Nyanza District in Southern Province and
Karongi Province in Western Province.
Our Mission
The mission of Caritas Gikongoro is “To assist needy people in improving socio-economic well-
being”.
Our Vision
The vision of Caritas Gikongoro is to “Have a society where human dignity and the integral
development of people are promoted according to evangelical values”.
Values
The Values of Caritas Gikongoro are “Charity, Dignity, Solidarity, Equality, Responsibility,
Integrity, Transparency, and Advocacy”.
CDJP ORGANIZATIONAL BACKGROUND
Meet the people behind CDJP Gikongoro
We are the staff of the Catholic Diocese of Gikongoro assigned to the Justice and Peace Commission (CDJP Gikongoro), a Faith Based Organisation. Our team includes coordination, project implementation and support staff.
We are agents of peace and our work is based on the Gospel of Christ, the Social Doctrine of the Church and the four pillars of peace: truth, love, freedom and justice.
We work as a team to achieve our common goal related to our vision and mission, sharing action plans, experiences and learning from each other. This group work allows us to develop our skills. We are also characterised by transparency, honesty, solidarity, sociability, dynamism, trust, objectivity, collaboration and a willingness to learn and discover new initiatives.
Our team is made up of a diverse range of people in terms of age, gender, language, nationality, religious affiliation and so on. This diversity allows us to learn, discover and create new initiatives and improve the way we work thanks to different points of view.
The beneficiaries of our projects are mainly vulnerable people, including families in conflict, the poor, vulnerable women, single mothers, historically marginalised people and released prisoners. It should also be noted that our team is characterised by good project management and networking with other state and non-state actors.
Our Mission
The CDJP Gikongoro is an instrument of the Diocese’s social pastoral work, and its aim is “the reign of truth, justice, freedom and charity, which alone can guarantee mankind a solid and genuine peace, a sine qua non for the integral and sustainable development of our communities, in the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ”.
Our Vision
The mission of the CDJP Gikongoro is to “Work towards building lasting peace by establishing the rule of law, through education for justice, peace and reconciliation, the defence of human rights, especially those of the weakest and poorest, the denunciation of injustice and the widespread dissemination of the social teaching of the Catholic Church”.