Fund Raising for a Vehicle in Angola Mission

The Congregation of the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of the Mother of God is an international congregation with less than 300 members, which are presented in nine countries: Brazil, Germany, the United States, Taiwan, China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Namibia, and Angola. In response to our charism which is to BE a compassionate and contemplative presence among the most needy and in thanksgiving for the 100th anniversary celebration of the congregation, we opened a Mission in Angola 11 years ago, especially to work in the areas of education, health care and religious formation. Therefore, since December 26, 2009 the sisters have been present at the Catholic Mission, Katepa Parish, Archdiocese of Malanje-Angola -Africa.

Urgent Needs and Reasons for the Request

1. Mission Purpose: Since the beginning of our presence in Malange-Angola, the Sisters have been using a vehicle that was bought with the help of an organization in Austria. This vehicle has been serving well all these years, however since 2019 with the increased need for health care assistance and food distribution in many spread villages in remote areas, the need for a second vehicle has become more evident for the sisters to attend more people in need. Hunger and disease are the two primarily realities in Angola. Every week sisters need to visit villages to provide either food or medicine. Due to the lack of public transportation, the Sisters depend exclusively on one car to drive to their work/mission places. With only one vehicle, service delivery has been very much limited but put-on hold for the available transportation.

2. Fund for the Mission: Sisters living in Angola have very little financial income, which is less than 20% of their cost of living. Despite the efforts they have been making, but due to the limit by the government for foreigners to receive good paid jobs, they are not able to support themselves, consequently they still depend on the Congregation. Therefore, the mission is sustained by the Congregation and by donations.

3. Project Cost: In general, vehicles in Angola are very expensive. And the roads in villages are not paved with mud, rocks, and many holes. Therefore, a dependable sturdy car that can drive in all kinds of roads will cost around USD 30,000.00, including the documents and fees. For this reason, the congregation has come very respectfully to ask for financial assistance for the purchase of a vehicle. We anticipate that we have a 20 percent counterpart of this amount set aside for this purpose. We request this amount, but we welcome as much as you can contribute to this mission to the most needy.