31,000 displaced in temporary sites

There are now over 31,000 people staying in 17 displaced persons’ sites in northern Brazzaville, according to figures provided by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). Most of the sites are located in and around church compounds, where people from the Bacongo and Makelekele areas of southern Brazzaville fled as a result of heavy fighting between government forces and Ninja militia in December. Some 18,300 of the most vulnerable displaced people, including children under five years, pregnant women and disabled persons, regularly receive WFP food aid, distributed by IFRC. The Red Cross Movement is also providing water supplies and health care services and is distributing UNICEF-donated essential drugs in the displaced sites, IFRC said. Some 140 local Red Cross volunteers are supporting these efforts. It is estimated that another 30,000 displaced people from the now-deserted neighbourhoods of Bacongo and Makelekele are staying with families or friends in the north of the city.