Ituri Humanitarian Crisis Demands International Attention

The humanitarian situation in Ituri province in the northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) demands urgent attention.

Development Diaries reports that education is being affected as a result of the crisis, as children frequently attend school in cramped, unmaintained classrooms with little to no food to support them.

This has a detrimental effect on their academic performance as well as their psychological well-being.

The humanitarian catastrophe in Ituri, DRC, is a harrowing manifestation of longstanding ethnic tensions, resource conflicts, and systemic instability.

According to the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), over 1.6 million people were displaced in the province at the end of 2023.

Since February 2024, several attacks have driven hundreds of thousands of people from their homes, contributing to a breakdown in social cohesion among communities that has been hastened by increased inter-communal violence.

Nearly 200 violent incidents have occurred in Ituri since the beginning of the year, with the number of attacks rising gradually over the last six months, according to the NRC.

Georgette is an internally displaced woman who arrived at the Plaine Savo camp in 2019.

‘I feel like I’m in prison here, it’s not a place I like. I’d like to go home. It’s hard to get food’, she said.

‘There’s not much assistance. Access to water is also a problem. I’m tired of this life, especially when I see my children who can no longer go to school’.

To address the issue in the province, a comprehensive strategy that is backed by enough resources is needed. This strategy must address current needs while constructing long-term solutions for those impacted.

Development Diaries calls on the government of DRC to look into the needs of the conflict-affected Itruri region and provide needed attention to the internally displaced persons.

Source: NRC

Photo source: NRC