Over 5,000 displaced in Lubumbashi

A recent inter-agency assessment mission to Lubumbashi found that there were 5,000-6,000 internally-displaced persons (IDPs) currently in the city, according to a UN report received by IRIN. About 900 displaced people living in a transit site were receiving limited food assistance from MSF-Belgium and ICRC, while some 500 displaced at two other sites were being assisted by UN agencies. Many other IDPs living with local families in the city would receive WFP food distributions, the report said. Prospects of return to communities of origin in northern Katanga were slim due to continued conflict and the presence of landmines, it added. Most of the displaced in Lubumbashi were found to be in reasonable health, according to a spokeswoman for WFP, which participated in the mission. WFP started to distribute food aid to the displaced last week, the spokeswoman said.