Sunday, April 04, 2021

The Congolese are hungry and sick

 Around 27.3 million people in the Democratic Republic of Congo are experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above), making the central African country the host of the highest number of people in urgent need of humanitarian assistance in the world.

 A third of the population analysed is experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above), with 6% to 7 in Emergency (IPC Phase 4), adding up to 6.7 million people in this situation.

Measles is once again on the rise in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The recent upsurge in cases – more than 13,000 since January 1st – is a major source of concern for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Between 2018 and 2020, the worst measles epidemic ever recorded in DRC tore through the country. In just two years, more than 460,000 children contracted the disease and nearly 8,000 died from it. Three-quarters of them were under five.  An inexpensive and 85 per cent efficient vaccine exists, which protects vaccinated people for decades. Measles is the most contagious disease in the world, nearly 10 times more than COVID-19. Winning the fight in the DRC against this killer will require a vaccine coverage of 95 per cent with two doses per child, and regular mop-up campaigns to vaccinate those who slip through the cracks, including in the most vulnerable, difficult to access areas. But we are still very, very far from this.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Snapshot | March 2021 - Democratic Republic of the Congo | ReliefWeb

In DRC, measles is spreading and killing again in what seems to be a never-ending fight - Democratic Republic of the Congo | ReliefWeb

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