Advocating for a comprehensive response towards IDPs around Goma in DRCongo
Humanitarian Programme Circle 2025 in Goma, North Kivu, the Democratic Republic of Congo
The United Nations Office OCHA has organized four days workshop on the Humanitarian circle 2025 from Monday September 23rd to Thursday September 26th, 2024 in Goma. It may not be the issue of the amount of money but also how is the money used and for what it being used, so far little money has been mobilized and if we do not use it well, that is the problem.
As organization, we sent our officer Gedeon Luendo is attending in order to contribute towards improving services in IDP Camps. We remain concerned about the deteriorating situation of IDPs in camps who have lived without humanitarian relief aid, in this period of the raining seasons we are wondering how they will survive, and as consequences we have in Nyiragongo IDPs Camps alone which is located in Northern Goma, a total number 1,350 people have died due to poor conditions of life since January 2024 up to now September. The United Nations have also indicated that only 37% of the funds requested for humanitarian activities have been contributed, on our side while we put in place a fundraising strategy, we have observed that donations have dramatically reduced and that has affected our different interventions towards the people.
We believe in three main solutions in order to end this because we are pushing for a lasting solution.
The first is urgent interventions in terms of relief aid to IDPs in critical conditions now in Camps, we should do all that it takes to help all these people in difficult situations, the living conditions of IDPs around Goma is shame to all of us and we are pushing for support. As you have observed we have mobilized people in their local communities to contribute what they can have and they have done so, but now even the host communities are also affected because they have consumed all what they had, we also put in place a fundraising activity which is running and which needs your support. We are also working on the advocacy for effective use of the available funds especially the involvement of IDP Communities in the whole decision making process.
The second is advocacy for poverty reduction, we have observed a very close relationship between poverty and life in camps as vulnerable and marginalized people. We are in this way encouraging relief aid agencies to combine relief aid with livelihoods activities in order to reduce poverty and dependency on aid, and also to empower people economically so that they can be in position to change their lives through income generating activities.
And the third is the lasting peace, people should not be encouraged to stay in camps they should go back to their homes, and in this way we must end this war, which is now on its third year. To end this war so far the International Community believes in peace deal between DRC and Rwanda which is going on currently yet DRC people believe in military operations which the government has not yet taken seriously.
Basing on these lines, we are also now engaging relief aid agencies to focus on these specific needs, and we are happy that our presence may change the views and perceptions of some people in the audience.
