In the DRC, the number of deaths in the Kwamouth IDP camp in Bandundu continues to grow. According to the provincial ministry of humanitarian affairs, last week three new deaths were recorded. And these are unfortunately not the first. Since last August, 36 people have died, including a newborn. Two adults reportedly died of malnutrition.
Although food aid is present, the lack of adequate health care remains a serious problem. As Jeremie Bileke, Chief of Staff at the Kwilu Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, said, “They [health care] are really inadequate compared to the needs. We really ask that the partners intervene so that the conditions of the displaced people improve”.
Since August, 16,636 displaced persons have been received in Kwilu, forming 990 households, of which 13,021 live with host families and 2,625 have returned to their villages of origin. In Bandundu, 60 pregnant women and 56 unaccompanied children remain among the displaced.
The Red Cross, for its part, provided food aid to 3,040 displaced persons from Kwamouth territory received in the capital of Kwilu province. This intervention was made possible thanks to funding from the Humanitarian Fund.
The situation of the displaced people of Kwamouth is unfortunately not an isolated case in the DRC. The problems are numerous and divergent: floods, final exams disrupted by insecurity, food crisis, deployment of troops, inaccessible electricity, etc. It is therefore necessary that the public authorities as well as humanitarian organizations and international partners intervene to meet the needs of the population.