As the largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded in the Democratic Republic of the Congo continues to spread, MAF and Canadian partner Galcom International have worked together to bring potentially life-saving information—and the hope of the Gospel—to communities at the centre of the crisis.
An initial shipment of 750 solar-powered radios has reached Bunia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, after weeks of delays and unexpected obstacles threatened to keep them from their destination.
They arrived at an important time.
The Ebola outbreak declared in May has grown rapidly. As of August 26, the World Health Organization had recorded 5,794 confirmed cases and 2,786 deaths in the DRC. Ituri Province, where Bunia is located, remains the epicentre, with more than 4,800 confirmed cases. WHO has called it the largest Ebola outbreak ever reported in the country.
In an outbreak like this, access to trustworthy information matters. Helping people understand how Ebola spreads, recognize risks and know how to protect themselves and their families is an important part of stopping transmission.
That is where our good friends and ministry partners at Galcom International Canada saw an opportunity to help.
Based in Hamilton, Ontario, Galcom provides solar-powered radios and audio Bibles to ministries around the world. As the Ebola crisis intensified, Galcom began working toward sending 5,000 radios to Bunia, where local partners could distribute them among communities affected by the outbreak, including people living in displaced-person camps. The radios came preloaded with Ebola awareness and prevention information, giving families an accessible way to hear practical information that could help protect their health.
But they carry something else, too. Each radio is also an audio Bible.
Alongside the health information is the Word of God, offering the message of Jesus to people living through tremendous uncertainty. MAF pilot Dominic Villeneuve, who is serving with the MAF team in the DRC, described it as a particularly important time for evangelism as people facing fear and uncertainty seek the Lord.
A simple question becomes a complicated journey
The partnership began with a straightforward question from Galcom to MAF Canada: Can MAF help us get radios into Bunia?
Galcom had already rush-shipped the first 750 radios to Nairobi, Kenya, with plans to move them overland into the DRC. When that route encountered roadblocks, the radios remained in Nairobi. MAF Canada connected Galcom with MAF teams in East Africa and the DRC, who began looking for another way to complete the journey.
MAF was particularly well positioned to help. With normal transportation options into the region severely restricted, MAF had special humanitarian authorization to continue flying in and out of Bunia.
But having an airplane did not make the journey simple. What followed were many weeks of changing plans, regulatory requirements and flight permissions involving multiple countries. Routes that appeared ready to move forward suddenly had to be reconsidered, and the team repeatedly found themselves looking for another solution.
“It was a herculean effort to make the flight happen,” Dominic wrote. “We had to coordinate flight permissions and authorizations between three different countries, all with their own protocols regarding the outbreak.” Then, just as another plan was coming together, the aircraft itself presented a challenge.
Dominic departed Entebbe but quickly noticed an unusual vibration and returned to land. A ventilation fan had suddenly developed a problem. After determining the fan could safely be turned off, he tried again. On the second departure, an engine temperature gauge malfunctioned. For the second time that day, Dominic turned the airplane around. This time, it was grounded and the flight was cancelled.
Another plan. Another delay.
More than a logistical battle
For Dominic and the MAF team, the repeated obstacles carried a spiritual significance as well.
After all, the cargo waiting in Nairobi was not simply a shipment of radios. The devices could help communities protect themselves from Ebola, but they were also carrying the Gospel into a region where people were searching for hope.
Dominic described the experience as a spiritual battle. Yet through each setback, the team continued praying, working with authorities and searching for another way to get the radios through. “We took courage in the Lord and He made it happen,” Dominic wrote. “Not in the way we originally planned, but the way HE planned all along.” After many weeks, the breakthrough finally came.
The 750 radios reached Bunia.
From there, local partners could begin getting them into the hands of people affected by the outbreak.
It is a small but powerful picture of partnership: Galcom supplying a tool that can bring both practical information and the Gospel; MAF Canada helping make the connections; and MAF teams across East Africa and the DRC using aviation to overcome the final barriers between those resources and the people waiting for them.
And the work is not finished. Galcom hopes that thousands more radios will follow. For now, the first 750 are where they need to be. The information preloaded onto them can help people understand Ebola and protect their families today. And long after this outbreak is over, our prayer is that the Scripture they carry will continue speaking into homes and communities across the region.
As Dominic put it, the hope is not only that the crisis will end, but that “the Word of God takes hold in the hearts of those who receive these devices.”
