Over 74,000 conflict victims in DRC get food assistance

Mar 8 Xinhua

The World Food Program (WFP) has distributed vital food assistance to more than 74,000 people affected by armed conflicts in North Kivu province in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), according to a statement from the UN agency.

The statement said Wednesday that the WFP had partnered with the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) to provide food assistance to the displaced persons.Security has been partially restored by the DR Congo Armed Forces (FARDC), enabling humanitarian workers to distribute food aid to hundreds of families that had returned to Nobili in North Kivu, the statement said.“We are very concerned by the food situation for the residents of Nobili and Kamango,” said Martin Ohlsen, WFP representative in DR Congo.

“They missed the planting season in October and risk lacking food if no assistance is provided to them,” he added.While appealing for the protection of the entire civilian population, we want to encourage all parties in the conflict, as well as Congolese and Ugandan authorities, to clear the passage for humanitarian workers and trucks carrying food aid,” Ohlsen said.

This year, the WFP plans to offer food assistance to more than 2 million people in DR Congo. To achieve this objective, it will require over 48.5 million U.S. dollars before August.