In July 2022, inter-community tensions erupted in Kwamouth, Mai Ndombe province, leading to an explosion of violence in this area close to Kinshasa. This outburst of violence - houses put on fire, people attacked, wounded and killed – led to the displacement of several thousand people in August, leaving many without shelter, access to safe water and sanitation.
An MSF team was deployed to Kwamouth on 24 August to assess and respond to the urgent needs of people affected by these events. On site, MSF organised mobile clinics to ensure access to basic care for families; referral of complicated cases to Kinshasa; psychological consultations; donations of medicines and basic necessities to the displaced (mosquito nets, jerry cans, soap, aquatabs, etc.); installation of latrines and water distribution. In just 3 weeks, more than 750 medical consultations were organized, a dozen wounded patients were brought to Kinshasa for emergency care and 25 people were provided with psychological care due to the violence-related trauma.
Despite the needs on the ground, and the appeals launched by MSF, no emergency humanitarian organisation has been deployed to respond to immediate needs of the IDPs, making MSF the only organisation present on the ground.
By mid-September, the security situation in Kwamouth town improved, leading many IDPs to return home, while tensions and violence continued in areas further away from the town, notably towards the eastern axis to Bandundu.
MSF therefore decided to reduce and end its interventions in Kwamouth town while deploying teams on the Eastern axis of Bandundu to offer medical support to all those affected by the violence, in a difficult context where access to some patients is complicated by the security situation, displacement and fear.