The bloodiest conflict since World War II, the civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Cogno (DRC) has resulted vast numbers of people being internally displaced to the relatively safer eastern Congo, now home to over 1,600,000 refugees. This adds to the burden of some 155,000 refugees from Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Sudan and Uganda who live in rural areas of the country.

The situation in the region has been further exacerbated by recent outbreaks of conflict in the North-West province of the DRC. Clashes over farming and fishing rights have left villages torched, crops destroyed and thousands of people killed, injured or displaced. Over 120,000 refugees have fled across the Oubangui River to seek refuge in the neighbouring Republic of Congo.

These new arrivals vastly outnumber the local population and are placing a huge strain on their limited resources. Meanwhile, the refugees remain in desperate need of food, clean drinking water, sanitation, health care, primary education and protection services. As the only UN agency with a field presence in the region, UNHCR has coordinated the response to this crisis from the very beginning.

Throughout the DRC thousands have fled into the bush or crossed into western Uganda. Robbed of their land, livelihoods and support networks, these families are highly vulnerable to exploitation, violence and disease.

UNHCR runs three camps in the east of the DRC for internally displaced people (IDPs), near the city of Goma. Refugees receive high energy biscuits, plastic sheeting, building materials and a plot of land on which to erect a provisional shelter.

UNHCR also provides accommodation and relief for Congolese refugees crossing into Uganda. During the fighting season (September-December) an Emergency Response Team is stationed at Ugandan border crossings to register new arrivals and provide hot meals, water, sanitation, emergency shelter and medical care. From there, families can choose to be transferred to refugee facilities further inside Uganda, such as Nakivale refugee settlement.

These commitments place a massive strain upon UNHCR resources. Without your help, we would be unable to aid those who need our help most.

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