By Sonia Lowman | Communications Officer
Following heavy fighting with government forces, a Congolese rebel group has seized control of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province in eastern DRC and home to one million people. More than 25,000 people have fled Goma so far, as have 60,000 refugees from a nearby camp—adding to the 1.6 million people already displaced in eastern DRC after 15 years of civil war.
With over 700,000 civilians now at risk from the escalated violence, International Medical Corps is preparing an emergency response and engaging with humanitarian partners on the ground to assess critical needs. Anticipating shortages of essential medicines and supplies, we are also mobilizing resources to get urgent pharmaceutical and medical supplies to where they are needed.
International Medical Corps always does what it takes to reach those most in need, wherever they are. In eastern DRC, we work in some of the most remote and volatile areas, often where the presence of other international organizations is extremely limited or non-existent. We prioritize women and children’s health, as they tend to be most vulnerable—making up 80% of refugees and internally displaced people worldwide.
Further, in a crisis or refugee situation, one in five women of childbearing age is likely to be pregnant, while access to critical health services becomes extremely limited. As a donor to our “Save a Mom’s Life in the Congo” project, we know that women and children’s health is very important to you. Help us make sure that mothers and children in the Congo continue to receive the lifesaving health services they need—even in the midst of conflict—by contributing to our emergency response in DRC. As always, thank you for your invaluable support for the people of DRC and International Medical Corps’ work in this war-torn country.
Learn more about our emergency response in DRC.
International Medical Corps began working in DRC in 1999 and has since served approximately two million people, 80 percent of them displaced by the war. Today, we provide health care, nutrition, food security, sexual violence prevention and treatment, and water and sanitation services.
By Callie Spaide | Project Leader
By Callie Spaide | Project Leader
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