Rose Mapendo

Rose Mapendo was born in Mulenge, Democratic Republic of Congo in 1963 to a Banyamulenge Tutsi family. Married at the age of 16, she began raising a strong family unit with her husband. Everything changed for the Mapendo family in 1998 when they fell victim to the ethnic genocide that originated four years earlier with the intent of punishing the Tutsi tribe. Within a week the government ordered all men to be murdered, which included her husband. Rose and her family were taken to a prison camp where they endured horrific conditions. Today, Rose works as a global activist to bring awareness to the violence that continues in the DRC. Through her nonprofit, the Rose Mapendo Foundation, she is able to provide necessary survival resources and vocational training to women in her community who continue to be affected by the vicious ethnic warfare that still exists. Rose’s missions is to end suffering for all women and secure them a spot at the Peace Table, where true change can be made. 

Learn More About the Rose Mapendo Foundation. Support Rose's Work To Uplift Women.