No access to north Katanga displaced

A UN mission to Lubumbashi, Katanga province, on 12-13 March reported the presence of some 1,000 displaced persons at two sites in the town, the latest edition of OCHA News said. It said the OCHA/UNDP mission concluded that support to the health sector was required but it did not identify any emergency requirements. Access remained restricted for humanitarian workers attempting to travel outside Lubumbashi where the humanitarian needs of some 18,000 displaced persons in the north of Katanga remained of high concern, it said. Meanwhile, the impact of the war has altered normal food marketing systems in the DRC’s southwestern provinces, FAO said. In its latest food security update, FAO said food imports into Katanga province from Zambia and South Africa had gone down, as had local agricultural production levels particularly in conflict-affected areas. At the same time, consumption requirements in the province had increased due to a large military presence. As a result, agricultural produce from neighbouring Kasai Oriental is being called on to meet needs in Katanga.