DRC: Unprecedented food crisis threatens 28 million people

Record food insecurity

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is facing an alarming food crisis. According to the World Food Program (WFP) and theUN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 28 million people are suffering fromacute food insecurity, an all-time high. This situation is exacerbated by armed conflict,economic instability and rising food prices.

Violence and soaring prices: an aggravating context

The country’s eastern provinces (North Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri) are ravaged by ongoing violence, forcing thousands of families to flee their homes. These massive displacements are destroying crops, limiting access to food and plunging local populations into extreme poverty.

At the same time,galloping inflation and disruptions to supply chains have driven up the prices of staple foods, reaching +37% in just a few months for products such as corn flour, palm oil and cassava flour.

Millions of people in emergency situations

Analyses of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) indicate that 3.9 million people in the DRC are now in IPC phase 4, a level of emergency hunger. Among them, 738,000 internally displaced people suffer from extreme food insecurity. In several regions, fighting and insecurity are hampering the delivery of humanitarian aid, further complicating the situation.

Conclusion: A critical humanitarian emergency

Faced with this unprecedented crisis, humanitarian organizations are calling for international mobilization to help the millions of Congolese threatened by famine. Secure access to vulnerable populations and sustainable solutions are essential to avoid a major humanitarian catastrophe.