UN calls for $540 mn aid to help DR Congo displaced

The UN World Food Programme on Friday appealed for 540 million dollars to help six million people displaced by conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

WFP said it had to embark on "extreme prioritisation... leaving millions of vulnerable people without food assistance as needs continue to outpace available resources" in the DRC.

"It's a painful decision, which is why we urgently need funds," said WFP's Deputy Country Director Natasha Nadazdin.

"As the conflict rages on, humanitarian needs continue to grow," said a statement from the UN agency.

"WFP urgently needs $397 million dollars for essential food and nutrition assistance in eastern DRC over the next six months to provide assistance to the 1.5 million people prioritised and a total $543 million to keep operations going countrywide."

The UN Office for Humanitarian Coordination said last September that of $2.25 billion required for the Congo's displaced, only $747 million was available as mid-August.

Eastern DRC's Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu provinces have been plagued by deadly violence for nearly 30 years.

North Kivu has seen the resurgence of the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel movement which has conquered vast swathes of the region in the last two years.