The UN agency for refugees has warned that in the Democratic Republic of Congo thousands of refugees and internally displaced people are at risk due to a lack of funding needed to support them in the midst of conflict and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Massive funding gaps threaten hundreds of thousands of lives in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where escalating violence and COVID-19 are already exacerbating dire conditions for millions of forcibly displaced people, UNHCR said in a statement released Tuesday.
UNHCR warned that underfunding could have devastating effects on critical lifesaving humanitarian programs without urgent injection of cash.”Our activities to assist and protect the refugees and the displaced are only 20% funded of the US$168 million needed,” the agency said. “This gap is seriously undermining our response to bring aid to the multiple humanitarian emergencies, leaving many vulnerable without food, water, shelter, health and hygiene facilities amid a rapid spread of COVID-19 across the country.”
The DRC has the largest internal displacement situation in Africa according to UNHCR. After prolonged cycles of violence, 10 per cent of the global number of internally displaced people can be found there.“Over the past few months, hundreds of thousands more people have been displaced in eastern and northern DRC following brutal attacks by various armed groups, intercommunal violence and natural disasters,” the agency explained.
More than half a million refugees are also hosted in the country – mainly from Rwanda, Burundi, the Central African Republic (CAR) and South Sudan.
The situation in the DRC has long been tense, according to UNHCR, but the coronavirus pandemic has made matters worse.
“While the overall humanitarian situation [in DRC] remains alarming, UNHCR is forced to make difficult choices that result in many of those in dire need not getting the assistance they require. We are working to help the most vulnerable to the extent possible, minimum standards in health, water and sanitation, education and other basic needs are often hard to meet with limited resources available for all populations,” the agency said.
COVID-19 outbreak further worsens the risks facing displaced families. Because of the ongoing violence these people are unable to return home, and often live in overcrowded displacement sites or with poor host families. Many are unable to take the recommended measures to avoid infection with coronavirus: their living conditions do not allow social distance, and there is limited access to water, sanitation systems and health facilities.