The humanitarian situation in the Republic of Congo (RoC) has been characterised as a forgotten war, no peace initiative has been sponsored at either the domestic or the international level since the war resumed in December 1998. Large numbers of people have fled their homes and are dispersed in forests, remaining inaccessible to the humanitarian community. An estimated 332,000 people have been displaced by the conflict (OCHA - 19/08/99).
The presence of numerous militia allied to different political factions has complicated negotiations for access. Reconciliation talks and offers of amnesty by the government to those who have taken up arms have not been taken seriously. Reports of continued harassment of IDPs and refugees returning home to Brazzaville persist.
The government, meanwhile, has adopted a policy of normalisation encouraging the return of Brazzaville residents from the Pool region and the DRC since May. Between May and mid-August, nearly 175,000 people have moved to the capital - this figure includes IDPs who had sought refuge in the Pool region at the outset of fighting, residents of Pool seeking refuge in the capital and refugees who had been in the DRC. At the time of going press, approximately 1,000 people per day were arriving in Brazzaville (Jaspars - 23/09/99; OCHA -19/08/99).
Brazzaville
When people return to Brazzaville they are registered. Those with no address, relatives, or friends in the city go to a displaced site. All returnees receive a week's ration. Those in the displaced site receive food as long as they are in Brazzaville (i.e.: have not returned to Pool). The ration is currently determined by WFP's food availability.
MSF-F has been screening children under-five as they are registered. Very high levels of malnutrition have been continuously found since early August, as can be seen in the table below. Note that these results are from a screening and may be biased (e.g., it is possible that some children were not measured or that others were.
|
Date of screening |
Oedema |
<70% median weigh-for-height |
70-89% median weight-for-height |
|
2/8-8/8 |
17.3 |
2.1 |
12.4 |
|
9/8-15/8 |
19.7 |
6.0 |
14.4 |
|
16/8-22/8 |
22.0 |
4.1 |
14.3 |
|
23/8-29/8 |
20.2 |
5.5 |
19.8 |
|
5/9 |
21.7 |
4.3 |
16.5 |
In August, CARITAS started a food distribution for vulnerable families in Bacongo and Makelekele with WFP food. Approximately 37,000 vulnerable families were identified, who received food for five days. The number of vulnerable people registered has since been increased to 50,000 to include all those discharged from feeding programmes, but there have been no distributions since August due to pipeline difficulties. WFP reports that local food purchasing is being considered, pending the arrival of food through the regular pipeline (WFP -17/09/99).
Pool
Information on the situation in Pool and Nibolek, home to 800,000 Congolese, is limited as neither the humanitarian or religious communities are able to obtain access to these areas; or cannot go without a military escort. Anecdotal reports describe a situation where the local population is trapped between the Ninja militia and the army. Many people are unable to leave Pool and have very little information about the situation in Brazzaville. Travel along the main road is dangerous. Those people who have arrived in Brazzaville have spoken of leaving weaker family members behind and of many deaths.
The Pool region was one of the main suppliers of Brazzaville's markets, selling cassava, vegetables, pulses, wood, palm wine, cattle etc. Traders would return with salt and smoked fish form the north of the country. At the start of the crisis the population of Pool could generally access their farms in the forest and obtain food, however, since July the price of cassava has dropped to very low levels.
In addition to the very poor food security situation all state care services including health care have broken down in the Pool area.
Refugees in RoC
It is hoped that the 2,600 Rwandan refugees of concern to UNHCR in the RoC will be locally settled as soon as possible. An agreement, although not yet formalised, has been reached with the Government and it is hoped that the programmes can be implemented soon (UNHCR - 27/09/99). No information is available on the nutritional situation of the 8,000 Angolan refugees in the country.
Overall, the situation in RoC is very serious. In Brazzaville, the available information indicates that the situation is critical, and the returnees are classified as category (I). Information is not available for the rest of the country, but the displaced populations in Pool are also considered to be at high risk, given the security situation described and the condition in which people are leaving the area (IIa). The nutritional status of the refugees is unknown (category III).
Priorities and Recommendations
· Gaining access to Pool in order to assess and respond to the humanitarian crisis there is paramount.· Provide food and medical assistance to the population of Brazzaville urgently.
