What Oxfam is Doing
Years of sporadic conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has resulted in one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, which has taken the lives of an estimated four million people. Preventable diseases have killed many of them. More than a million others have scattered across the country, seeking safety.
Despite its vast potential wealth—DRC contains about 50 percent of the African continent’s forests and one of the largest river systems in the world winds through it—the country and its 56 million people are among the poorest on the planet. According to the United Nations Development Index, DRC earned a rank of 167 out of 177. The index measures standards of living, education levels, and life expectancy.
Conflict has inhibited the country’s ability to address that poverty. Overall, an estimated 16 million people are directly affected by hostilities. Many live in host communities in areas with a heavy military presence where they don’t have access to adequate food or services.
Oxfam is one of the leading agencies providing water and sanitation in DRC. Our work includes both longer-term development projects, such as improving schools, as well as help for people displaced by conflict. We are now working in the eastern regions of Ituri, North Kivu, and South Kivu where communities are hosting tens of thousands of displaced people. We are concentrating on providing clean water and sanitation and offering a public health program to promote good hygiene.
