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Current Requirements (US$)$2.25 billion
Analysis of the context, crisis and needs
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) context remains illustrated by worrying humanitarian trends. Across the country, 26.4 million people – or one Congolese out of four – are severely food insecure, despite the impressive agricultural potential of the land. Acute malnutrition hit 6.4 million people, mainly children under age 5, a number that has not decreased over the past 20 years. Armed conflicts and gross human rights violations, including sexual violence and grave violations against children, continue to push millions of people to seek safety and security away from their home: 5.7 million people are internally displaced, the highest number on the African continent. Severe yet preventable epidemics, such as measles, yellow fever, cholera and malaria, take a significant human toll every year due to poor infrastructure, constraints to health access and a low vaccination coverage, impacting children’s development and their life expectancy at birth. Every hour in DRC, four women die during labour or from pregnancy-related conditions. DRC ranks among the countries with the highest rate of infant mortality: 70 out of 1,000 living births. In 2022, DRC still ranks among the countries with one of the lowest human development across the world (179 out of 191), with a scoring even lower than in 2020. Sixty million (out of 109 million) Congolese live in extreme poverty.
Nod-Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo
These displaced people found shelter at Stade de Rugabo, Rutshuru centre, after fleeing clashes in Jomba.
OCHA/Endurance Lum NjiThe situation has not improved in 2022. On the contrary, the security situation that fuels the humanitarian crisis and lasting needs has further deteriorated with the resurgence of armed conflicts in the east and the emergence of new crises in areas previously spared by violence. North-Kivu Province has triggered international attention, as the M23 (an armed group that signed a Peace Agreement with DRC in 2013) resumed its attacks and occupied several localities, forcing 271,000 people to flee to safer areas in DRC, and across the Ugandan border. In the north-east, violence has spread across Ituri Province, as armed groups have expanded their presence across all territories and perpetrated dozens of attacks against civilians, including those living in IDP settlements. The use of improvised explosive devices increased in 2022, with dozens of civilian casualties. Pockets of insecurity remain in hard-to-reach areas across South-Kivu and Tanganyika Provinces, triggering constant population displacements and large-scale violations of human rights. Close to the capital, Kinshasa, intercommunal violence erupted by mid-2022 in Maï-Ndombe Province, causing 55,000 people to flee and seek safety, including across the shore in neighbouring Republic of Congo.
Nord-Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Many people fled violence in Rutshuru, taking refuge in places including schools and churches and with host families.
OCHA/Endurance Lum NjiWeak health-and-sanitation infrastructures, a low vaccination coverage and acute malnutrition continue to trigger epidemics, with a severe impact on the life expectancy of children under age 5. As of 23 October, 12,066 cases of cholera and 123,301 cases of measles were confirmed, with 218 and 1,490 deaths recorded, respectively. There were also recorded cases of contamination and deaths relating to other epidemics, such as bubonic plague, in areas where they are endemic. During the year, humanitarian actors supported the Government to successfully fight two Ebola outbreaks, one in the western province of Equateur (five deaths) and one in the eastern province of North-Kivu (one death). At least 181 security incidents directly affecting humanitarian personnel or assets were reported from January to August 2022. Nineteen humanitarian workers were abducted, 19 were injured and 4 lost their lives while providing assistance to people in need. These numbers show no improvements in the situation compared to the same reporting period for 2021 (19 humanitarian workers abducted, 19 injured, 5 lost their lives).
Projected situation in 2023 and beyond
The humanitarian response in DRC is one of the longest running on the continent. Until a solution to the conflict is identified, humanitarian needs are likely to continue to increase, with insufficient levels of funding to assist all those in need. The East African Community is expected to deploy troops to support the Congolese armed forces in stabilizing the east of the country. The Government of DRC has entered into talks with most armed groups to push for an efficient demobilization process, but some armed groups are still actively fighting and unlikely to be persuaded to sign a peace agreement in the near future. Intensified attacks against civilians by armed groups, or civilian casualties during crossfire, may trigger further large-scale displacements in areas where welcoming capacities are already saturated. A large majority of displaced people are women and children. They face specific protection risks, such as sexual violence or forced recruitment, in the locality where they shelter or as they flee violence.
In 2023, presidential, legislative and local elections are planned to take place. There are major concerns as to whether elections can take place peacefully, or if they will likely trigger renewed tensions and conflicts.
Chefferie Tundwa, Territoire de Kalemie, Province du Tanganyika
Amida and her children fled violence in their home region, but they recently returned and will soon receive ownership documents for a plot of land.
OCHA/Aurélie DURAYNatural disasters will likely continue across the country and negatively impact the humanitarian situation. There is a strong need to identify durable solutions to cyclical events to increase the affected population’s resilience and strengthen their ability to prepare for and respond to natural disasters. Floods, crop destruction, earthquakes or volcanic eruptions remain among the high risks that can exacerbate the population’s vulnerability, especially in conflict-affected zones.
The management of the last two Ebola epidemics was efficient in limiting the human death toll and the contamination rate. However, it is likely that measles, cholera, malaria, another outbreak of Ebola, and outbreaks of diseases such as bubonic plague or monkeypox will continue to break out across the country. This is particularly true as massive displacements in short periods of time force IDPs and host communities to share overcrowded spaces, with insufficient access to water and sanitation facilities. In hard-to-reach and remote areas, the vaccination coverage rate remains largely insufficient to eradicate these diseases that are contributing to drastically reducing the life expectancy of Congolese children. Widespread malnutrition among children and pregnant and lactating women, fostered by extreme poverty and deprivation, will continue to further expose children under age 5 to these epidemics, putting their lives at risk. A large percentage of the population will remain food insecure due to widespread poverty, conflict and displacement, low agricultural production, high food prices and the lack of basic infrastructure. However, the latest IPC analyses report that a slight decrease in acute food insecurity is projected during the first half of 2023, with 24.5 million people likely to be in IPC Phase 3, crisis or higher.
Response priorities in 2023
By the end of 2022, the humanitarian community in DRC expects to have reached 6.24 million people, or 71 per cent of the initial target. This is lower than the amount of people reached in 2021 (6.6 million people). As of October 2022, US$703.7 million has been received, which represents 37 per cent of the required funding to address the needs of the targeted population affected by the humanitarian crisis in 2022. Since 2016, the DRC Humanitarian Response Plan has been systematically underfunded, covering less than half of the targeted population. While funding levels have not necessarily decreased, needs have skyrocketed in the past years, from 7 million people in need in 2015, to 13 million in 2018, to 27 million in 2022. As violent conflicts persist, and as natural disasters continue to strike, the number of people in need will likely continue to rise over the years. In 2023, of the 26 million people in need, the humanitarian community will aim to assist 10 million people across the country, using the same prioritization criteria as in 2022, with an estimated financial requirement of $2.25 billion — the highest amount requested in the past 20 years. The number of people in need reflects the number of acutely food insecure people across DRC, which is slightly lower than last year. However, the funding requirement increased due to the price increases of fuel and commodities worldwide. In DRC, the cost of reaching vulnerable people who need humanitarian assistance in poorly connected areas has largely increased due to a stark increase in fuel prices. The prices of food and commodities on local market have rocketed, especially those of imported products. The response strategy will continue to focus on addressing the consequences of the five humanitarian impacts that define the intersectoral severity analysis: population movements, food insecurity, malnutrition, epidemics and protection incidents.
Democratic Republic of the Congo HRP
While key figures remain annual, the strategic framework of the response will be reconducted in 2023 to enable humanitarian actors to increase their collaboration with non-humanitarian actors so that collective efforts are made to address structural needs across DRC.
In 2023, the Humanitarian Country Team will focus on ensuring the quality of the humanitarian assistance delivered, further advancing accountability and community engagement. The strategic objectives of the response, focused on responding to urgent needs and improving living conditions, have been revised in order to emphasize the quality and timeliness of the response in light of the specific needs encountered by all groups of people affected by the humanitarian crisis. Strategic indicators were added to assess beneficiaries’ satisfaction regarding the assistance received, their level of trust and confidence in humanitarian actors, and their knowledge and use of feedback mechanisms, restating that all responses should be tailored to ensure the people we serve are at the centre of all actions. Another set of indicators has been added to measure humanitarian actors’ capacities to prevent sexual exploitation and abuse, to identify, mitigate and respond to sexual and gender-based violence, to mainstream protection, and to ensure that assistance is gender and age sensitive. The response strategy also focuses on advancing the localization agenda by putting national and local organizations and associations at the heart of the response strategy, and supporting their capacities to develop and implement tailored programmes to respond to people’s needs.
References
- Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, 18 October 2022 : Democratic Republic of the Congo : Acute Food Insecurity Situation July – December 2022 and Projection for January – June 2023, https://www.ipcinfo.org/ipc-country-analysis/details-map/en/c/1155972/?iso3=COD
- UNFPA, 17 septembre 2021: https://drc.unfpa.org/fr/news/unfpa-engag%C3%A9-%C3%A0-sauver-des-vies-de-femmes-et-nouveau-n%C3%A9s-en-rdc