20th March, 2014
UK-based agency Christian Aid has warned of an impending humanitarian crisis in parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo after fighting has displaced more than 400,000 people.
The organisation says more than 60 villages have been burnt to the ground in the province of Katanga in the past six months against a background of fighting between government troops and Mai Mai and Bakata Katanga rebels. It says the violence has intensified since January with its partner organisations recording steep increases in the number of displaced people.
Salome Ntububa, regional emergency manager for Christian Aid, says the situation in the province of Katanga is desperate with people displaced from their homes unable to afford to buy basic shelter, bedding, firewood or medication.
"(C)hildern under 14, which make up over a third of the displaced population, are eating only one small meal per day at best…" she says.
While the prospect of disease is also a concern – particularly given wells have been contaminated, there are also fears that some young women and girls will be forced to turn to prostitution to feed families. Only 10 per cent of parents in the region can now afford to send their children to school.
– DAVID ADAMS
