"Let's listen to one another."
That's what the word toyokana means in Lingala, a local language in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
At the Toyokana Center in the capital city of Kinshasa, listening is their mission. It's a facility for girls to come to be treated after sexual assault — and also to be heard.
"Creating this kind of a safe space was really the main demand from these girls," says Loa Falone, a social worker at the center.
After years of working with young girls, Falone has seen that many cases of sexual violence occur within families. "A girl who was raped by her father won't know in whom she can confide, whether her mom or someone else, she just won't know if she can feel safe to do that," says Falone. "There was really a strong desire to have a safe space where these girls will be heard, protected and taken care of."
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