Dr. Denis Mukwege, Congolese Surgeon and ABA ROLI Partner, Receives Nobel Peace Prize

Dr. Denis Mukwege (center) alongside members of ABA ROLI’s DRC team.

ABA ROLI is pleased to congratulate Dr. Denis Mukwege, Congolese gynecological surgeon and ABA ROLI partner, on his 2018 Nobel Peace Prize Award, which he and Yazidi activist Nadia Murad, received for their contributions to the fight against sexual and gender based violence (SGBV).

For nearly a decade, Dr. Mukwege has provided medical assistance to thousands of survivors of sexual violence throughout the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) - a country devastated by armed conflicts that have disproportionately affected women since the 1990s.

In 1999, Dr. Mukwege opened the Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, the largest city in the South Kivu province of the eastern DRC, where it has continued to operate as a vital resource for survivors of SGBV, and a public hospital. Through the Ushindi Project, which launched in 2011, the Panzi Hospital has worked to address SGBV alongside ABA ROLI, IMA World Health, Search For Common Ground, as well as the Ministry of Health in North and South Kivu. Ushindi is Swahili for “we overcome,” and the project provides local paralegals with the tools they need to resolve conflicts peacefully, particularly those related to SGBV issues.

“As the ABA ROLI representative in the DRC, I've worked in close collaboration with Dr. Mukwege and the Panzi Hospital (2009-2018). Proud of our achievements. Proud of Dr. Mukwege Nobel and [his] achievements. A great man.” - Charles-Guy Makongo, ABA ROLI DRC Country Director.

ABA ROLI has also collaborated with the Panzi Hospital, HEAL Africa, MONUSCO, and various other NGOs, to conduct military and civilian rape trials. Read more about ABA ROLI's work in the DRC here.

Watch the full version of the documentary (above) about ABA ROLI's work to combat SGBV in the DRC here.