DRCongo: UN sets up joint mission over 2M displaced

By Godfrey Olukya

ARU, Democratic Republic of Congo (AA)- Two UN agencies said Wednesday that they have established a joint mission in two provinces in the Democratic Republic of Congo where there are millions of displaced persons.

A statement by the World Food Program (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on UN radio in the country said the mission’s aim is to assess the situation on the ground and consider urgent humanitarian actions.

“Two million displaced persons are in the provinces of Tanganyika and Kasai. It is unheard of. It's overwhelming. It is a huge population. The situation is bleak,” said Alexis Bonte, the FAO’s interim representative in the country.

Since last August, Kamuina Nsapu militiamen have been clashing with army and police in the central Kasai province, leading to thousands of people fleeing their villages.

The country’s Catholic Church recently said that over 3,000 people have been killed and over 1.3 million displaced in Kasai since August.

Similarly, clashes between pygmies and Bantu in the eastern Tanganyika province for over a year have led thousands of people to flee their villages.