The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a warning that millions of people in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are experiencing a health and humanitarian crisis due to escalating conflict and violence, particularly in the eastern regions.
The surge in violence by armed groups, including the Rwandan-backed M23 Tutsi-led rebels—a claim denied by the Rwandan government—has resulted in mass displacement, widespread disease, gender-based violence, and severe mental trauma.
Dr. Adelheid Marschang, a senior emergency officer at WHO, informed journalists in Geneva that the DRC now has the highest number of people in need of humanitarian aid globally, with 25.4 million affected. She noted that the DRC is “one of the most underfunded crises,” which impedes the delivery of relief supplies and care necessary to protect people from infectious diseases, hunger, and sexual and gender-based violence.
The United Nations’ $2.6 billion Humanitarian Response Plan, aimed at assisting 8.7 million people in the DRC in 2024, is currently only 16% funded. Marschang mentioned that WHO has received only $6.3 million of the $30 million required until the end of the year, as the situation is expected to deteriorate further.
“Mass movements of people overwhelm water and sanitation systems and bring an additional burden on the population’s scarce resources,” she said.
“As a result, people are facing outbreaks of cholera, measles, meningitis, mpox and plague, all exacerbated by severe flooding and landslides affecting some parts of the country.”
In the first half of this year, the WHO has reported more than 20,000 cases of cholera, including 274 deaths, most in North Kivu province, and 65,415 cases of measles, including 1,523 deaths.
“The actual numbers are likely to be higher due to limited disease surveillance and data reporting,” Marschang said.
She stated that armed conflict and mass displacement, compounded by widespread floods, are exacerbating hunger and malnutrition, as families are forced to abandon their farms, crops, and possessions to seek safety. According to the latest IPC Chronic Food Insecurity report, about 40% of the DRC’s population—40.8 million people—are facing serious food shortages, with 15.7 million experiencing severe food insecurity and higher risks of malnutrition and infectious diseases.
Marschang noted that 1 million out of 6.9 million children are malnourished and at risk of becoming severely acutely malnourished if they do not receive specialized therapeutic treatment.
Children with this condition have weakened immune systems, making them susceptible to deadly infectious diseases. Severe acute malnutrition also has serious cognitive consequences, affecting children’s future prospects.
During a media briefing earlier this week, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director-general, highlighted the global health threat posed by mpox, with 26 countries reporting nearly 98,000 cases to the WHO.
He pointed out that the DRC is facing a growing epidemic, with more than 11,000 cases and 445 deaths reported this year, with children being the most affected.
Mpox, a viral disease, spreads through close contact with an infected person, contaminated materials, or infected animals. Last month, scientists warned of a dangerous new strain of mpox in South Kivu, which could spread widely in overcrowded camps in and around Goma.
“It is a reason for concern,” Marschang said, adding that two camps in North Kivu province are infected with the virus.
“If we consider that we have military activities around those camps and some camps were actually targeted this year, I think it illustrates the increasing risk for this disease to spread and also the difficulties of containing it if security is not addressed,” she said.
The U.N. peacekeeping force MONUSCO began winding down its operations in South Kivu in January. Marschang warned that “could create a security vacuum.”
“This could throw us further into a situation of increasing numbers of displaced, of victims, of violence,” she said, “with the whole vicious cycle just continuing.”
