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Violences and displacement in North Kivu

For more than two years, the province of North Kivu in Democratic Republic of Congo has been the scene of an armed conflict between the “Mouvement du 23 mars” (M23) and the Congolese armed forces (FARDC), supported by old and more recent armed groups ("patriotic" militias, foreign paramilitary groups, etc.). In a province already ravaged by almost 30 years of armed violence, this "M23 crisis" has led to an explosion in the displacement and medical and humanitarian needs of the population, as well as violence against them.

The latest intensification of the fighting once again caused tens of thousands of people to flee to Goma, the provincial capital, which was already home to several unsanitary sites where tens of thousands of people had taken refuge. In just the first week of February, armed clashes have forced over 200 000 people to flee towards Goma.

New informal sites have sprung up, and many families have swelled the ranks of older IDP sites, already saturated by two years of conflict and where living conditions fall far short of expected humanitarian standards.

The current situation is a source of major concerns. The influx of new displaced people towards Goma is exacerbating the critical health situation and urgent needs in the sites, where conditions were already dire before the new arrivals and increases the risk of diseases. In addition, the closer proximity of the fighting to the provincial capital is increasing the physical risks for the people living in these sites.

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