US $2 million "urgently required" to mobilise aid workers

Although its food transport special operation has been fully funded, the World Food Programme (WFP) reported on Friday that it still urgently needs almost US $2 million for its air passenger service, which WFP called "fundamental to the ability of the humanitarian community to get aid workers to the worst affected areas, in a situation where roads are almost non-existent".

WFP also reported its supply pipeline to be "reasonably healthy" for its assistance to Congolese affected by armed conflict, but cautioned that new pledges were necessary for future distributions of food to people in isolated areas.

In Equateur province, WFP has established a sub-office in Zongo, where some 20,000 Central Africans fled following the failed May coup in Bangui. In response to this influx of refugees, WFP locally purchased 280 mt of food in Bwamanda. WFP is now preparing an additional food shipment by barge from Kinshasa to Zongo, together with some non-food items provided by the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR.

In South Kivu province, insecurity "seriously hampered" WFP's planned operations in the plains of Ruzizi and Uvira, and field missions have been suspended until further notice. According to reports received by WFP, houses in Kalonge have been systematically looted by armed groups, while movements of troops to Bunyakiri, Hombo and Nyabibwe have resulted in new population displacements towards Walungu, Kabare, Shabunda and Ninja. Despite difficulties, WFP distributed 267 mt of food to over 38,200 people from 15 to 21 Oct, mainly through nutrition programmes.

In Katanga province, the availability of fuel enabled WFP to resume food distributions to internally displaced people in Malemba Nkulu, in collaboration with NGO Caritas.