The World Food Programme has urged for $630 million in emergency aid, stating that the relentless rain in the conflict-plagued eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is rendering living conditions “unlivable” for millions of people.
The United Nations agency has approximated that 3.6 million displaced individuals require assistance in the provinces of Ituri, North Kivu, and South Kivu, where armed groups have been active for decades.
“The living conditions for people in the camps, who have fled the fighting… have become disastrous with the arrival of the rainy season,” the WFP said.
“Families are sheltering under layers of tarpaulin held up by thin branches of trees,” the WFP statement said, calling the conditions “unlivable”.
In addition to food insecurity, the WFP emphasized that inadequate hygiene conditions are exacerbating the sanitation crisis, noting that cholera is rampant in the camps.
“Due to the poor-quality road infrastructure, the heavy rainfall has blocked deliveries of food.”
Furthermore, the presence of armed groups has introduced “insecurity” that hampers access to vital supply routes, the report stated.
The WFP said it had increased capacity in recent months but “resources are lacking”, particularly for “host communities” to help the displaced.
The WFP emphasized an immediate need for $629.7 million to sustain and expand critical assistance in the three provinces.
