Part two: Inter-Agency Appeals
HRP
People in need
27 million
People targeted
8.8 million
Requirements (US$)
1.88 billion
Total population
92.4 million
Income level
Low income
INFORM Severity Index
4.6 / Very High
Consecutive appeals
1999 - 2022
People reached (2021)
7.1 million

Analysis of the context, crisis and needs

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) remains one of the world’s most complex and protracted humanitarian crises. Armed conflict continues unabated in the eastern part of the country, particularly in North Kivu and Ituri Provinces, where the Government has declared a state of siege. Almost 5.5 million people are still uprooted, the highest count in Africa. In 2021 alone, there were an estimated 1.5 million displacements. DRC also currently hosts 517,790 refugees from neighbouring countries.

According to the latest IPC cycle, 27 million people face acute food insecurity, which remains the highest number for a single country in the world. In addition, an estimated 4 million children under 5 years of age are acutely malnourished, a 17 per cent increase from last year.

Violent conflict, epidemics and natural disasters continue to compound high levels of poverty, weak public infrastructure and basic social services, as well as conflict dynamics over land and mineral resources. Since October 2021, a new Ebola outbreak has emerged in North Kivu with 11 cases, adding to the complexity of the humanitarian situation in the highly volatile northern part of the province.

COVID-19 continues to place a toll on the population, with at least 57,879 confirmed cases and expansion throughout the territory. These developments come in addition to recurring epidemics such as cholera and measles. As of October, there have been 6,208 cases of cholera and 50,046 cases of measles registered since the beginning of the year. This is despite the end of the national measles epidemic in August 2020.

Natural disasters have also placed their mark on humanitarian response. On 22 May 2021, the eruption of Mount Nyiragongo led to the temporary displacement of over 400,000 residents of Goma, leaving an estimated 10,000 people homeless.

The volatile security situation, particularly in the eastern part of the country, and poor infrastructure continue to hinder access to affected people. DRC remains one of the riskiest environments for humanitarian workers. At least 260 security incidents directly affecting humanitarian personnel or assets have been reported since the beginning of 2021.

Projected situation in 2022 and beyond

Conflicts and population movements in eastern DRC are expected to continue in 2022 with persistent clashes, particularly between armed groups and national armed forces. High levels of acute food insecurity in several parts of the country and the effects of communicable diseases (cholera, measles, malaria, COVID-19) will remain. The situation could be further aggravated by the evolution of new epidemics (e.g the recent Ebola outbreak in North Kivu and the meningitis epidemic in Tshopo) and potential natural disasters, such as floods. Most vulnerable groups include IDPs, returnees and host communities.

National and provincial political dynamics and the reconfiguration of the UN Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) could also influence the protection environment and local contexts. Regional risks include a renewed and increased influx of Congolese nationals expelled from Angola (towards the Kasai region and Kwango Provinces).

The number of people who need humanitarian assistance in DRC in 2022 (27 million) has increased compared to 2021 (19.6 million). This is due to an increased number of people in acute food insecurity (essentially due to increased geographical coverage of the IPC analysis). In addition, ongoing and intensified conflict in some areas (particularly North Kivu and Ituri but also parts of South Kivu and Tanganyika) will continue to severely affect people. Structural underdevelopment and humanitarian crises will continue to limit people’s access to essential goods and services, impacting their capacity for resilience.

Response priorities in 2022

The 2022 response strategy will focus on population movements, food insecurity, malnutrition, epidemics and protection incidents. In 2022, humanitarian partners will aim to assist 8.8 million of the most vulnerable people in DRC, with an estimated financial requirement of US$1.88 billion. The Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) has been further prioritized through intersectoral severity analysis and convergence and based on operational capacity to ensure the most severe needs are prioritized.

DRC HRP

A key focus of the humanitarian response will be on Ituri, North and South Kivu and parts of Tanganyika, where there is a convergence of humanitarian impacts, deepening humanitarian needs and increasing vulnerability levels. The humanitarian community will deliver targeted, multisectoral assistance, and it will continue to reinforce its accountability to affected people (AAP), prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse, mitigation of gender-based violence risks in programme implementation, inclusion of people with disabilities and localization. Building on progress made since 2019, particularly based on joined efforts in Kasai and Tanganyika Provinces, humanitarian actors will continue operationalizing the nexus approach to help reduce vulnerabilities and decrease humanitarian needs.

Achievements and innovations

During the 2022 Humanitarian Programme Cycle process, the DRC humanitarian community mobilized itself to better understand affected communities’ perceptions of humanitarian actors and humanitarian interventions. For this purpose, under the overall coordination of the national and regional inter-clusters, humanitarian actors conducted a perception survey with a sample of women and men from IDP, returnee and host communities in six provinces, as well as a series of focus group discussions (57 groups targeting IDPs, returnees and host communities in six provinces) to collect quantitative and qualitative data to capture perceptions, concerns and information needs by crisis-affected populations.

This data, analysed jointly with the results of a Multi-Sector Needs Assessment conducted in one province, revealed a number of useful observations, including on the opinions of IDPs, returnees and host communities on current humanitarian interventions; on their preferences and priorities for future humanitarian interventions; and on priority information needs and preferred means of communication with humanitarian actors. The results were analysed during regional workshops. They will continue feeding into the ongoing planning and programming cycle and into the AAP Working Group at HCT to better inform decision-making, harmonize approaches and strengthen efforts.

Further reading

References

  1. Population movements commissions, Statistical data on population movements (September 2019 – August 2021).
  2. UNHCR, Refugee data as of the end of July 2021.
  3. IPC analysis, 20th cycle (July-December 2021), October 2021.
  4. Bulletin SNSAP (August 2021).
  5. WHO/MoH Ebola situation report (30 October 2021).
  6. WHO/MoH situation report 292/2021 (19 October 2021).
  7. Health Cluster data, epidemiological surveillance (week 41, 2021).
  8. INSO, UNDSS, OCHA, as of end of September 2021.