Emergency response
The humanitarian situation has deteriorated considerably in the past years.
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Challenge
Although the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has made significant progress in reducing child mortality and access to education for children, a majority of children remain deprived of many of their rights. Beyond the challenges of long-term development, the country marked by growing humanitarian needs
following the crises in the Kasai region, as well as in the Provinces of Tanganyika and South Kivu.
More than 13 million people need humanitarian assistance in the DRC, including 7.8 million children.
Conflicts and displacement continue to have devastating consequences. Hundreds of thousands of people - many of them children - have had to flee the violence in their areas and have taken refuge in host families or in the bush. For months, they have been denied access to the services they need such as health care, clean water and education.
Since August 2018, a tenth Ebola epidemic has erupted east of the DRC, just months after a previous outbreak that hit the north-west of the country.
Solution
Every child should have an equal chance to survive and thrive.
In 2017, UNICEF and its partners provided 82,600 displaced, refugee and returnee children with safe access to community spaces for socialization, play and learning. Over 209,000 children affected by severe acute malnutrition were treated, 1.88 million children were vaccinated against measles. UNICEF provided medicines for the treatment of 35,000 cases of cholera and cholera-response packages for 764,000 people in high-risk areas for cholera.
UNICEF used the Rapid Response to Movements of Populations mechanism (RRMP) in Eastern DRC and the Kasai region to provide non-food items, multipurpose cash transfers, health, and education and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) assistance to over 866,000 people.
Since May 2018, UNICEF and its partners have been assisting the Government of the DRC in responding to outbreaks of Ebola in the country.
For every child, a childhood
UNICEF is on the ground before, during, and after emergencies, working to reach children and families with lifesaving aid and long-term assistance