U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
BUREAU FOR DEMOCRACY, CONFLICT, AND HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE (DCHA)
OFFICE OF U.S. FOREIGN DISASTER ASSISTANCE (OFDA)
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO - Complex Emergency
Situation Report #1, Fiscal Year (FY) 2002    May 2, 2002


Note: the last situation report was dated November 9, 2001.

BACKGROUND

Insecurity, the lack of infrastructure, and limited access to vulnerable
populations continue to hinder humanitarian assistance in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Joseph Kabila became the President of the DRC on January 26, 2001,
following the death of his father, Laurent-Desire Kabila. President Joseph
Kabila has publicly committed to fostering peace in the DRC and supporting
the Lusaka Peace Accords signed in July-August 1999. A cease-fire has held
in accordance with the Lusaka accords for the past year and UN Observer
Mission in the DRC (MONUC) observers are verifying that troops have
withdrawn the requisite 15 kilometers (km) from their forward positions.
MONUC has started to focus on additional activities such as the
disarmament, demobilization, and resettlement of combatants.  However, in
the eastern part of the country (North Katanga, Maniema, North and South
Kivu Provinces)  fighting has intensified involving, among others,
ex-Rwandan Armed Forces (ex- FAR)/Interahamwe and Mai Mai forces against
the Congolese Democratic Assembly - Goma faction (RCD-G).

Some withdrawal of foreign forces from the DRC has taken place in the past
year.  Namibia, Uganda, and Angola have all withdrawn significant numbers
of their troops.  However, Rwanda and Zimbabwe have maintained significant
forces in the DRC.  The GDRC controls the western part of the country.
Uganda has supported the opposition group Movement for the Liberation of
the Congo (MLC) based in Gbadolite, Equateur Province, which controls most
of Equateur and some of Orientale Province in the north.  Rwanda backs the
RCD-G, which is based in Goma, North Kivu Province, and controls much of
North Kivu, South Kivu, Maniema, Orientale, and Katanga Provinces.

Insecurity in rural and urban areas has restricted access to agricultural
land, decreasing harvest yields and contributing to the food security
crisis. Lack of access to traditional markets has discouraged farming.
Poverty is widespread and the health care system has eroded due to a lack
of resources and continuous looting by different parties in the conflict.
People have low purchasing power due to the lack of markets and
infrastructure. The World Bank estimated Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per
capita at U.S. $78 in 1999. Widespread insecurity has resulted in limited
private sector activities. President Joseph Kabila has attempted to
address these economic concerns, however, the economy faces difficult
circumstances.  The January 17, 2002 eruption of the Mt. Nyiragongo
volcano also strained already limited humanitarian resources.

NUMBERS AT A GLANCE                            SOURCE
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)
  Total: 2,275,111
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA)

Refugees from the DRC
  Total: 326,000
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Refugees in the DRC
  Total: 365,025
  186,675 from Angola
  74,990 from Sudan
  30,380 from Rwanda
  26,545 from CAR
  19,475 from Burundi
  20,750 from Uganda
  3,300 urban refugees living in Kinshasa
  2,910 from the Republic of Congo
UNHCR



Total FY 2002 USAID Assistance to the DRC   $27,980,441
Total FY 2002 USG Humanitarian Assistance to the DRC   $47,470,811



CURRENT SITUATION

Ongoing Insecurity in the DRC

Accidental gunfire by a soldier with the Ugandan-backed MLC struck a
United Nations Antonov 26 plane on February 13 as it landed in Kindu in
eastern Congo.  The shooting highlights the continuing risks that MONUC
observers take while traveling to remote regions of the DRC.

Fighting in the northeastern region of the DRC has been ongoing over the
past year, particularly in Orientale Province around Bunia, Beni, and
Isiro between various Congolese factions, including the RCD-National (RCD-
N) faction, the RCD-Liberation Movement (RCD-ML)  faction, and the MLC,
reportedly with some support by Mai-Mai militia.  Inter-ethnic clashes in
Ituri also occurred during the past six months.

On March 16, Rwandan-backed rebels captured the port town of Moliro, a
Congolese Armed Forces (FAC) base in Katanga Province on the western shore
of Lake Tanganyika.  One week later the rebels withdrew from Moliro
following pressure by the UN Security Council, and government forces have
agreed not to retake the town.

In another incident highlighting the prevailing insecurity for
humanitarian workers in the DRC, local residents harassed staff members of
the NGO International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Goma during the last two
weeks of March as IRC attempted to phase down their three-month volcano
emergency USAID/OFDA-funded water and sanitation project. IRC worked with
community leaders and UN security to successfully relocate their water
bladders.

Prevailing insecurity, particularly in the east, requires humanitarian
assistance workers to rely on air transport to access remote, vulnerable
populations.  In South Kivu province, for example, insecurity in early
March 2002 caused the temporary suspension of the UN World Food Program
(WFP) food distribution and the food security situation is expected to
deteriorate. WFP reports that 435,000 IDPs and 123,200 refugees are
located in South Kivu province.  In North Kivu province, WFP has
registered 525,000 displaced, of which 161,350 will receive food rations
under a seed protection program partnered with the non-governmental
organization (NGO)  German Agro-Action.  WFP reports that it plans to
distribute over 60,900 metric tons (MT) of food commodities during the
calendar year 2002, contingent on security, access, and commodity
availability.

During the month of March, five international NGOs were forced to
temporarily evacuate from areas of South Kivu and Katanga Provinces as a
result of escalating conflict between Mai-Mai militias and RCD-Goma
troops, particularly in the Kitutu area of South Kivu Province.

At the end of March and into April, international sources reported clashes
between the ethnic Tutsi Banyamulenge, who are the oldest Tutsi community
in the country, and Rwanda-backed RCD-Goma fighters in the Haut Plateau of
South Kivu Province.  According to independent news sources and the UN
Wire, approximately one thousand people have been killed in eastern and
northeastern DRC as a result of fighting between Rwandan troops and some
of their rebelling allies, and between Ugandan proxy forces and
Ugandan-backed MLC rebels.  UN sources reported increased fighting during
the week of April 15 in Shabunda and Zongwe, in South Kivu Province.  UN
observers have noted the arrival of new Rwandan-backed RCD battalions in
the region.

A UN helicopter carrying four military observers was fired upon on April
18 as it returned from a visit to Moliro, in eastern DRC, but no one was
hurt.  Neither of the armed groups in the area has claimed responsibility
for firing two grenades at the helicopter.


Striving for Peace

On January 14 in Blantyre, Malawi, the Southern African Development
Community (SADC) hosted a summit that included the heads of state from
Angola, Botswana, the DRC, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South
Africa, Swaziland, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, and
Zimbabwe.  At the invitation of the President of Mozambique, the leaders
of the two main rebel movements (the MLC and RCD-Goma) met briefly with
President Kabila but no substantive issues were discussed. The three
groups continued informal discussions in Geneva during February 4-9 to
exchange views on the transitional leadership and elections, and the
national army.

The UN Security Council in March called on RCD-Goma to withdraw from
Pweto, in Katanga Province, and reminded all parties to the conflict that
the town of Kisangani, the capital of Orientale Province, remains to be
demilitarized.  In early April, the two areas had not yet been vacated.

The presidents of the DRC, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and South Africa,
along with ministers from Uganda and Angola met in Lusaka, Zambia on April
4 for a one-day summit that did not, as hoped, reach any further
commitments towards fostering peace in the DRC.  Rebel representatives
were not in attendance.

The Inter-Congolese Dialogue (ICD) the process by which Congolese leaders
are to decide on the new political institutions to reunite their country,
commenced on February 25 in Sun City, South Africa, with an estimated 650
representatives of the current government, the rebel groups, militias
backed by the government, political parties, and civil society groups.
In a positive step on April 11, the government and the rebel groups agreed
to integrate their armed forces.  On April 19, the GDRC and the MLC, under
the leadership of Jean-Pierre Bemba, signed an agreement wherein Joseph
Kabila would remain as President, Jean-Pierre Bemba would take office as
Prime Minister, and the GDRC and the MLC would consolidate 70 percent of
the country.  The RCD-G, according to the Secretary General Azarias
Ruberwa, does not support this agreement and continues to hold conflicting
views on institutional changes in the government during the transitional
period.  The peace talks ended on April 19, but analysts agree that many
issues remain to be resolved, including when elections will be held and
how the RCD-G will act under the new power-sharing agreement. The dialogue
is indicative of continuing efforts to establish lasting peace and
security in the DRC, which would considerably alleviate humanitarian
suffering and facilitate increased relief efforts.

On April 29, a convoy of "humanitarian barges" filled with 1,000 MT of
relief supplies contributed by a number of international agencies
(including USAID/OFDA)  departed from Kinshasa to travel up the Congo
River to Kisangani.  UN OCHA organized the transport of the goods and
MONUC will be escorting the barges from Kinshasa to Kisangani.  The barges
will return with food supplies for the capital, and MONUC and UN OCHA hope
that the journey will mark the beginning of the reopening of the Congo
River to commercial traffic.


MONUC Update

The UN Secretary-General's Tenth Report on MONUC (dated February 15)
reported that Phase II of MONUC's mandate had been successfully concluded
and the Mission's support structure had been strengthened to facilitate
Phase III activities.  Phase III includes disarmament, demobilization,
repatriation, resettlement, and reintegration activities for armed groups
in the DRC.  In coordination with these new activities, MONUC established
four coordination centers at Basankusu, Boende, Ilebo, and Manono.

At the end of March, MONUC teams totaled 3,633 military and civilian
personnel from 47 different countries.  These teams are located throughout
the DRC, including in more unstable parts of Eastern Congo.

The UN military observers estimate the total number of Rwandan rebel
forces in the DRC to be between 10,000 and 12,000 fighters, which are
comprised of the former Rwandan Armed Forces (also known as ex-FAR) and
the Interahamwe militia.  These forces represent two factions of the
Rwandan Liberation Army (ALIR).


Eruption of Mt. Nyiragongo Volcano

On January 17, the Mt. Nyiragongo volcano erupted and lava flows into Goma
prompted the temporary displacement of an estimated 300,000 people.  Few
deaths were attributed to the eruption, but an estimated 80,000 residents
were rendered homeless due to the destruction of 12,000 households as a
result of the lava flows and seismic eruptions.  The previous eruption
occurred in 1977 when lava flows covered 20 square kilometers, killed
2,000 people, and destroyed 400 homes.

>From the beginning of the emergency response until April 14, WFP had
delivered approximately 6,000 MT of food assistance to 448,400 vulnerable
people in the Goma region, some of who also received distributions of non-
food relief items.  According to UN OCHA, between February 11 and 15,
international organizations delivered additional food assistance to 16,129
homeless families in Goma, which consisted of a 15-day ration of corn
flour, pulses, oil, and corn-soy blend (CSB).  These vulnerable families
also received reinstallation kits.  Regular food distributions to 5,177
malnourished children and their families, children living on the streets
and hospital patients continued through the month of February.  The United
Nations appealed to the international community for $21.6 million for the
volcano relief effort.  At the beginning of February, U.S. Government
assistance to those affected by the volcanic eruption was more than $4.3
million.  As of late April, U.S. Government assistance for the volcano
relief effort totaled more than $6.6 million.

At the bottom of Lake Kivu, which borders the DRC and Rwanda, lies
dissolved carbon dioxide and methane gas that could pose a threat to
surrounding populations should the gases churn to the surface as a result
of an underwater volcanic fissure, seismic activity, or extensive lava
flows into the lake.  Scientists continued to monitor this minor threat,
and USAID/OFDA is investigating any health ramifications of carbon dioxide
emissions into crop fields and populated areas.

Scientists are also closely monitoring volcanic activity from Mt.
Nyamuragira, which lies further north from Goma than Mt. Nyiragongo.
Greater magma activity has been reported in the area surrounding Mt.
Nyamuragira, and UN OCHA and USAID/OFDA volcanologists continue to closely
watch the area.


New HC/RC

Herbert McLeod from the UN Development Program in New York has been
selected as the new Humanitarian Coordinator (HC) for the DRC.  The HC is
also the United Nations' Regional Coordinator (RC) for the DRC.  The
HC/RC's leadership works to strengthen coordination in the DRC.  The GDRC
agreed to his appointment at the end of March and he arrived at the end of
April.


Health and Food Security Situation

The health care system in the DRC has continued to erode since the
escalation of the current conflict in August 1998 due to looting, lack of
resources, and fighting which has prompted health care staff to flee.
Women and young girls increasingly have turned to prostitution in the
absence of other viable income alternatives, resulting in alarming social
consequences, including an increased incidence of HIV/AIDS.  In August
2001, the UN World Health Organization reported that 70 percent of the
population of the DRC was excluded from basic health services, and the
health care network has faced difficulties in coping with malaria,
cholera, and meningitis outbreaks.

Between September and December 2001, health authorities reported a
meningitis outbreak in South Kivu province, and approximately 100 people
died from cholera.  December 2001 floods in Mbandaka affected 13,000
people whose crops and homes were destroyed.

According to international media sources, 400 people died from cholera in
Katanga province between January and early March 2002, and 4,876 were
diagnosed with cholera by mid-March.  In 2001, 291 people died from
cholera in the province.  As a result of the ongoing conflict, control of
Katanga is divided between the government in Kinshasa and Rwanda-backed
rebels, hindering access by health and humanitarian workers to the
province.  By early April, the cholera epidemic had been contained.

In March, a nutritional survey conducted by the NGO Action Against Hunger
(ACF) found a more than 20 percent global malnutrition rate among the
accessible population in the Shabunda area of South Kivu Province.
However, Mai-Mai and Interahamwe movements prevent health workers from
progressing beyond a 30 km radius from Shabunda.  Humanitarian workers are
wary that greater malnutrition rates may be occurring in areas currently
inaccessible to assessment and assistance.

Displaced Populations throughout the DRC UN OCHA has reported more than
2.2 million displaced persons in the DRC as a result of both conflict and
natural causes, but figures are difficult to verify due to limited access
to many insecure areas, large areas of country to be visited, and ongoing
population movements.  While the number of IDPs countrywide has remained
relatively constant since June 2001, UN OCHA reported an increased number
of IDPs in South Kivu Province (by 210,000), Orientale Province (by
20,000), and Maniema Province (by 20,000) between September 2001 and
February 2002.  Escalating areas of conflict have caused these additional
population movements.


United Nations Appeal

In November 2001, the United Nations appealed for more than $194 million
from the international community for humanitarian assistance for the DRC.
The 2001 UN Consolidated Appeal was for $123 million, and was funded at 64
percent.



USG HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE

On November 5, 2001, U.S. Ambassador Aubrey Hooks re-declared a disaster
for the ongoing complex emergency in the DRC as a result of the continued
fighting since August 1998.

To date in FY 2002, USAID's Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance
(OFDA) is providing more than $10 million in emergency assistance to the
DRC and is reviewing options for additional assistance focused primarily
on health services and improving food security.  USAID/OFDA also supports
emergency market infrastructure rehabilitation and agricultural programs
for war-affected, vulnerable, and internally displaced persons.  Programs
that immediately provide assistance as well as projects that build local
capacity are integrated to promote livelihoods.  An important component of
USAID/OFDA assistance is the funding of AirServ International to operate
three humanitarian aircraft in areas outside of government control.
USAID/OFDA also contributed more than $3.2 million in relief assistance
for victims of the January volcano eruption.  USAID/OFDA also supports two
Emergency Disaster Response Coordinators (EDRCs) in the DRC to monitor the
humanitarian situation throughout the country and make programmatic
recommendations to USAID/OFDA in Washington.  USAID's Office of Food For
Peace (FFP) will provide a total of 18,060 MT of P.L. 480 Title II Food
Assistance to WFP in FY 2002 in order to assist food insecure populations
throughout the DRC.  The estimated cost of this pledge is $13.6 million.

USAID's Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) has developed a national,
multi-faceted program to support the transition to peace in the DRC.  The
program will establish a foundation for the advancement to democracy and
assist in the country's reunification by fostering exchanges across the
country.  USAID/OTI will promote access to balanced information, encourage
public participation in the peace process, and build the capacity of civil
society through the provision of resources to a broad range of
organizations. The total cost of the transition program is $4 million.

>From January 15-31, 2002 an intra-agency USAID team traveled throughout
the DRC to assess ways to expand USAID engagement in the country should
peace break out. The team's recommendations, which were approved, included
integrating a livelihoods approach that includes food aid, agriculture
programs, communications, micro-financing, and potentially other economic
growth activities into USAID's ongoing activities, especially ongoing
health activities.  The team also endorsed efforts to improve
communication between key communities throughout the DRC to decrease
isolation and increase local engagement and participation in the peace
process.

In FY 2002, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Foreign Assistance
Service (USDA/FAS) has provided 18,400 MT of 416(b) food commodities to
the DRC to assist in emergency food needs.  The more than $15 million
worth of food commodities includes 16,900 MT of cornmeal and 1,500 MT of
vegetable oil.

The State Department's Bureau for Population, Refugees, and Migration
(PRM) provided $4.44 million to UNHCR to assist refugees located in the
DRC.  PRM has also provided $9.27 million to UNHCR to assist Congolese and
other refugees from the region who are located in neighboring countries to
the DRC.  Specifically for Congolese refugees located in Rwandan refugee
camps, PRM provided $419,724 to the American Refugee Committee (ARC).



U.S. GOVERNMENT HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO THE DRC

Agency
Implementing Partner
Sector
Regions
Amount



FY 2002

USAID 	$27,980,441
USAID/OFDA 	$10,380,441


Action Against Hunger (AICF)
Integrated Food Security, Health, Nutrition, Water/Sanitation
South Kivu and Katanga Provinces
$2,244,561

Action Against Hunger (AICF)
Health
Malemba Nkulu, Katanga Province
$477,647

AirServ International
Air transportation of humanitarian goods and personnel
Country-wide
$1,209,870

Catholic Relief Services (CRS)
Health
Kabinda
$201,502

Food for the Hungry International (FHI)
Food security
South Kivu, northern
Katanga Provinces
$744,577

International Medical Corps (IMC)
Health and nutrition assistance
Bunyakiri
$886,362

International Rescue Committee (IRC)
Health
Katana, Bunyakiri, South Kivu Province
$1,866,175

MERLIN
Health
Maniema Province
$878,036

MERLIN
Health
Kasai Orientale
Province
$163,061

Allotment for USAID Mission
Kinshasa
Kinshasa
$208,650

UNICEF
Health
Country-wide
$1,500,000


USAID/FFP   $13,600,000


WFP
18,060 MT in P.L. 480 Title II Food Assistance (9,010 MT maize, 5,910 MT
  beans, 2,140 MT corn-soy blend, and 1,000 MT vegetable oil)
Country-wide
$13,600,000

USAID/OTI	$4,000,000



Programs in support of peace initiatives and transition to democracy
Country-wide
$4,000,000

USDA   $15,050,370


WFP
16,900 MT of cornmeal and 1,500 MT of vegetable oil in 416 (b) food
  commodities
$15,050,370

STATE/PRM	$4,440,000



UNHCR
Assistance for refugees located in the DRC
Countrywide
$4,440,000

Total USG Humanitarian Assistance to the DRC in FY 2002	$47,470,811


- The USAID total does not reflect USAID's Africa Bureau planned budget of
$21.2 million in development assistance for the DRC in FY 2002.

- The USAID/OFDA total does not reflect USAID/OFDA's contribution of
$3,259,349 towards the Mt. Nyirongongo volcano eruption relief effort.


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