UN aircraft delivers aid to beleaguered Kindamba

A UN-chartered aircraft carrying 7.7 mt of food and non-food items landed at Kindamba in Pool region on Sunday, bringing the first relief aid to the beleaguered town since fighting erupted two months ago between government troops and so-called Ninja militiamen, the UN Humanitarian Coordination Office in the Republic of Congo (ROC) capital, Brazzaville has reported. An UN inter-agency team, which accompanied the delivery, counted some 2,000 people in one site of town, which is in the grip of a tight military cordon. The team, which was in the town to evaluate the needs of the population, will present a list of the families present in it to the World Food Programme (WFP), the UN office said. Food was distributed to 27 families. The remaining food, which could not be distributed due to lack of time, was handed over to the sub-prefect of the town - an army doctor with the rank of colonel. Emergency teams will only be conducting full-day missions and will not be on the ground overnight until security improves. Despite the prevailing sense of urgency before the relief and evaluation effort began, the UN team did not find the health of the town's residents to be in an alarming state, according to the UN office. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) had identified eight cases of malnutrition among children. and noted that since the fighting broke out on 27 March, people had been eating irregularly whatever food they could find, supplemented only by fruit, vegetables and tinned food they were sometimes able to buy from soldiers. "They lack proteins such as fish, chicken, red meat," the UN said. The army had just "a few days ago" begun allowing residents into nearby fields to search for food", the UN reported. The army also controlled the allotment of agricultural implements, and monitored the movement of each person going to and from the fields. Farmers had told the UN that they had to return to town early from their brief forays, leaving them insufficient time to cultivate. They had said that they would be unable to engage in serious cultivation until they were allowed to return to their homes. "FAO [Food and Agriculture Organisation] was present for an evaluation mission and will set up a pilot project for 30 families. Next, they will bring seeds and other items to enable cultivators restart their activities," the UN said. Health and Sanitation The World Health Organisation (WHO), UNICEF and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) are coordinating sanitation needs. IRC and UNICEF treated two wells and are working on an alternative way to supply the population with clean water. WHO and UNICEF vaccinated 340 children aged nine months to 14 years against measles, 330 children up to 10 years old against polio, and 27 pregnant women against tetanus. A small health clinic has been left stocked with full medical and pregnancy kits, and health workers have been told to watch out for signs of any potential epidemic. "The next mission will be to get the town's hospital rehabilitated," UN unit said. "The mission is planning to return to Kindamba at the end of the week."