Malimbo Njonjo Freddy
From: D’uvira, Democratic Republic of Congo
Age: 24

I was born in Goma on March 7, 1996, in the North-Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I am originally from the South-Kivu province in the D’Uvira territory. I come from an average family, not bourgeoisie. I live in the Karisimbi neighbourhood, on Avenue des Goma in the Katoyi quarter. I am the son of Sumuni Malimbo and Kibibi Mangaza. I am the fourth child in my family, whose exact number of children is nine. 

Photography is a dream to me, and I have dreamt about becoming a professional photographer since I was young. Before, I totally ignored this dream because I did not think I could become anything in the world of photography. This is because, to me, photography is one of the greatest things to exist. I completed the type of training I had always dreamed of at Camme through the Lens on Life Project, and furthermore, the training was free. 

After all this, I tried to join my uncle’s company as a territory agent, but things fell through. Thus, I lost hope in working for a company and gained hope in working as a photographer. In fact, when I was at home with my friends, I received a call from a friend saying, “Freddy you are ready to start training in photography right away.” I said that I was up for it because photography had long been one of my dreams. It’s the most incredible subject matter in my life. Photography is my life.