From Lived Experience to Humanitarian Leadership
SHORT PERSONAL BACKGROUND
My name is Ngulwe R jacques jack, Founder and Executive Director of RNGEM.I was born in Kasenya village, in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, into a family of thirteen children. My mother was a small-scale farmer, and my father relied on hunting to sustain our household.Like many families in the region, our lives were deeply affected by prolonged conflict. Repeated displacement forced us to move from village to village in search of safety, stripping us of stability, livelihoods, and access to basic needs.
During those years, survival became uncertain.
KEY TURNING POINT
The most defining moment of my early life was not displacement—it was loss.
Due to prolonged food insecurity, I lost five of my sisters and one brother to hunger and malnutrition.This experience shaped my understanding of vulnerability in its most extreme form. It revealed the devastating reality that, in many communities, survival is not guaranteed—not because solutions do not exist, but because access to them is limited.
EDUCATION & DEVELOPMENT
Despite these challenges, a turning point came when a local businesswoman chose to support my education, enabling me to complete secondary school. In 2020, I received further support to pursue university studies in Social Work. These opportunities were transformative. They demonstrated how targeted support, even to one individual, can change not only a life—but the potential to impact many others.
Later, I was also supported to pursue Discipleship Training School at the University of the Nations in Cape Town, South Africa, Muizenberg campus. This experience further deepened my personal development, leadership formation, and commitment to serving vulnerable communities.
DECISION TO ACT
My path forward was shaped by lived experience.Having experienced hunger, displacement, and loss firsthand, I made a deliberate decision to dedicate my life to addressing the same challenges affecting vulnerable communities across Eastern DRC.
This was not simply a career choice.
It was a commitment grounded in reality.
CREATION OF RNGEM
RNGEM—Rural New Generation Ministries—was established as a locally led response to persistent humanitarian and development challenges.Built from within the community, RNGEM focuses on integrated, practical solutions that address both immediate needs and long-term resilience, including:
Food security through sustainable agriculture
Access to education for vulnerable children and youth Protection and reintegration of street-connected children
Girls and Women’s empowerment and household resilience Peacebuilding and community stability
Environmental sustainability and responsible resource use
RNGEM exists to respond where the need is greatest—through approaches that are both context-driven and impact-focused.
LEADERSHIP VISION
Today, my leadership is guided by a clear principle:
Sustainable change is most effective when it is locally led, community-driven, and rooted in lived experience.
The vision of RNGEM is to contribute to a future where:
Children grow up protected, educated, and nourished
Families are resilient and economically stable
Communities move beyond survival toward long-term development
This work is not defined by the past—but by what is possible moving forward.
Across Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, thousands of children and families continue to face the same challenges that once defined my own life.
Their reality can change.With the right partnerships, sustained investment, and community-led action, lasting impact is achievable.
