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UNICEF Democratic Republic of the Congo Humanitarian Situation Report September 2019

Countries
DR Congo
+ 2 more
Sources
UNICEF
Publication date

Situation in Numbers
7,500,000
children in need of humanitarian assistance (OCHA, HRP 2019)
12,800,000
people in need
(OCHA, HRP 2019)
1,260,000*
Internally displaced people (IDPs) (HRP 2019)
*estimates for 2019
19,890
cases of cholera reported since January
(Ministry of Health)

Highlights

  • 30 September 2019, UNICEF’s Rapid Response to Movements of Population (RRMP) has officially ended after being the largest provider of multi-sectoral aid for rapid responses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

  • September 2019, a new academic school year has started in the DRC. UNICEF has reached over 170,000 children with access to quality education and psychosocial support, distribution of learning materials, and training of teachers to further promote a stable learning environment. Despite these efforts, educational needs in the DRC remain significant with over 2.6 million children affected by emergencies

  • UNICEF has scaled up its humanitarian response in Ituri and South Kivu provinces because of new waves of violence in the affected areas

  • The DRC Humanitarian Action for Children is significantly underfunded with a 74% funding gap. This gap impacts UNICEF’s response to recurring crises and prevent more than 3 million children from accessing their basic rights, such as access to education and nutritional support

Funding Overview and Partnerships

UNICEF appeals for US$ 326M to sustain provision of humanitarian services for women and children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In September, UNOCHA and the United Kingdom Committee for UNICEF have generously contributed to UNICEF DRC humanitarian response. UNICEF expresses its sincere gratitude to all public and private donors for the contributions received. However, the 2019 HAC still has a funding gap of 74%. Without sufficient funding, over 700,000 children will not have access to adequate therapeutic care for severe acute malnutrition (SAM), over 750,000 children affected by conflicts or natural disasters will not access quality education and psychosocial activities, and 737,000 persons affected by conflicts or natural disasters will not gain access to basic WASH services.

Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs

  • Returnees from Angola crisis: of the 12,709 spontaneous returnees from Lovua refugee camp in Angola during the month of August 2019, 6,405 people including, 3,587 children, have been transported to Kandi site, Kasai Central province. 5,000 returnees remain in the Kalambambuji site, Kasai Central province, where they continue to live in precarious conditions with multi-sectoral needs.

  • Minembwe, South Kivu crisis: in early September, a fourth wave of intercommunity conflicts led to an additional displacement of 49,000 IDPs in Minembwe, 1,500 IDPs in Mikenge, and 63,000 IDPs along the Abala – Mukera – Fizi Center axis. 210,960 IDPs3 have been identified since the beginning of the crisis in May 2019.

  • Maniema: 24 September 2019, torrential rains led to the destruction of 1,934 houses in Kindu, Maniema province, leaving over 14,400 persons homeless. In addition, nine schools have been destroyed and 5,409 students, of which 2,709 girls, have lost their school materials due to the heavy rain.

  • Tanganyika: 20 September 2019, the government has decided to close 3 of 14 IDP sites in Kalemie, Tanganyika province. 6,013 households are affected by this decision, of which 72% of the households have decided to return to their original communities.

  • Ituri: the crisis in Ituri province has led to an acute humanitarian crisis, with multiple protection violations against children and women. Attacks on villages and IDPs spontaneous sites (Rho and Duko) by armed men continued during the month of September. 223 civil protection incidents have been recorded, of which 155 incidents (70% of cases) are grave violations against children (40 cases of murder and mutilation, 17 cases of kidnapping and forced recruitments, and 98 attacks on schools7).