Canada announces $56 million to fight Ebola and other crises in DR Congo

Backgrounder

Republic of Congo

In Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, on January 14, 2020, Minister Gould announced $250,000 in funding would be provided to the World Food Programme and $40,000 to Caritas to assist the most vulnerable people affected by floods in the country.

World Food Programme activities will include:

• distributing rice, legumes, fortified oil and iodized salt to communities that no longer have access to food.

• providing families with cash vouchers to purchase food in areas where the price of food has soared because of limited access.

• increasing screening and treatment of children with acute malnutrition.

Caritas will provide emergency kits of essential household items to 500 families affected by the floods in Brazzaville. It will also conduct water and sanitation workshops with affected communities.

Democratic Republic of Congo

On January 15, 2020, Minister Gould announced $56 million in funding to help Control the Ebola epidemic address the humanitarian needs of the country’s most vulnerable people and strengthen its local health system. Funds will be allocated as follows:

Development assistance in response to the Ebola epidemic: $10 million

Implemented by UNICEF, this project will help build a stronger health care system in the eastern parts of the country affected by conflict and Ebola. Of note, it will help to increase the access and quality of basic health services offered to the most vulnerable populations in the region. This will help to prevent future outbreaks of Ebola and other health issues, such as cholera and measles. More than 5 million Congolese women and children will benefit from this initiative.

Humanitarian assistance: $45 million

Canada is allocating $45 million to trusted humanitarian partners working in the Democratic Republic of Congo to respond to Ebola-specific and other humanitarian needs. Activities will include providing:

• food distributions and nutrition assistance to vulnerable populations

• drinking water, hygiene, sanitation, health services and protection (including psychosocial support to survivors of gender-based violence)

• logistics and coordination support, such as air services, to improve the Democratic Republic of Congo’s and neighbouring countries’ ability to prevent, detect and respond to outbreaks

• training for community health workers and immunization campaigns

Peace and Stabilization Operations Program: $991,699

This project, implemented by Search For Common Ground, aims to reduce the spread of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s conflict-affected region of Nord-Kivu by encouraging positive communication between local actors helping to fight the virus, such as police officers, and vulnerable populations. Project activities will include the creation of communications tools to educate communities on Ebola in order to avoid misinformation and myths about the disease.