Crisis watch

Ongoing crisis – DRC

Nearly 13 million people affected by the crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo are in need of humanitarian assistance and protection in 2019: this figure represents 10 per cent of the total worldwide humanitarian caseload.

The affected people remain exposed to pervasive human rights violations, especially sexual and gender-based violence, chronic malnutrition, and epidemics, notably cholera, measles, and Ebola. Insecurity has had a devastating impact on people’s ability to access food, and millions are facing severe food insecurity.

CARE continues to provide humanitarian assistance to people in the most affected provinces in North Kivu, South Kivu and Kasai region. To date, we have reached 518,000 people though sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence protection and support, food security, WASH, nutrition, health and the Ebola response.

Mozambique – Cyclone Kenneth

CARE International’s emergency teams are scaling up assistance to people in the province of Cabo Delgado in Mozambique. Daw Mohamed, Humanitarian Director for CARE International, said:

In collaboration with our partners, we have already released a stock of about 1,300 tarpaulins that were distributed to the families in need. CARE is also bringing in more supplies including family kits, tents, and hygiene and WASH supplies to ensure that that affected people have the basics to survive.

So far, we have only reached a fraction of those in need due to our limited budget and the challenges in reaching the affected by road as most of the countryside is flooded. Our key priority for now is to support women and children, who are sleeping in open spaces where they are vulnerable to different types of gender-based violence and harassment.

Four days after Cyclone Kenneth made landfall, the northern parts of Mozambique continue to receive heavy rains and winds which are causing extensive flooding. Many houses - especially the traditional mud-and-pole huts that are common here - were swept away. Mohamed said:

Our primary concern is the welfare and safety of women and girls. Many of the mothers we have met are overwhelmed as they try to fend for their children. Yesterday, I met and spoke to women who were feeding their children unripe lemons as there was nothing else to eat. Our teams also saw women who were cutting some wet grass in the flooded fields to use as roofing cover for their damaged houses.

These additional responsibilities will very likely put women into positions of vulnerability and expose them to various types of gender-based violence and harassment. CARE wants to be able to support these women as soon as possible to avoid that.

Despite ongoing work, existing relief resources are not adequate for CARE to reach out to the most affected people. Mohamed said:

CARE urgently needs additional resources to tackle this situation that has affected thousands of people in northern Mozambique.

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Mozambique – Cyclone Kenneth

The video above was filmed from their vehicle by the CARE assessment team

CARE International teams in northern Mozambique are witnessing enormous scenes of damage and destruction in towns and communities that were struck by Cyclone Kenneth. An estimated 700,000 people have been affected. Daw Mohamed, Humanitarian Director for CARE International, said:

We have been out on an assessment mission in Maconia district this morning (27 April 2019) and the entire area is scene of vast destruction. People have been left homeless with no food, no water and are in urgent need of assistance.

CARE is planning to distribute essential household items including mosquito nets, water buckets, tents for shelter, and hygiene kits for women and adolescent girls. Some of the materials are already on their way to the affected areas but more assistance is required. Mohamed said:

Our priority is to make sure that women and girls are immediately supported with safe shelter and other basic needs so that they don’t become vulnerable to any dangers, abuse and other forms of exploitation.

The situation is likely to be compounded in coming days by expected torrential rains, which could cause severe flash flooding and extended and persistent river flooding. Mohamed said:

Our resources are stretched. We urgently need support so that we can reach more people affected by the cyclone. If we don’t, the repercussions could be catastrophic.

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Cyclone Idai - Malawi update

Funding remains low for CARE Malawi but despite this CARE has reached around 67,750 people in Malawi through distribution of food: 13,550 households received 50 kg of maize, 5 kg of beans and 1 litre of oil.

CARE Malawi teams have also completed the full rehabilitation and chlorination of 6 boreholes around camps for displaced people with a target to rehabilitate 250 boreholes. They have also procured construction materials for latrines and washrooms with delivery to sites planned this week.

CARE Malawi were also asked by the World Bank to provide technical support on gender during the post-disaster needs assessment.

Mozambique - Cyclone Kenneth

Cyclone Kenneth made landfall on the north coast of Mozambique on Thursday evening, with wind speeds equivalent to a Category 4 hurricane. Daw Mohamed, CARE Director of Humanitarian Operations, said:

The areas at high risk have 700,000 people who live in a region that has never been hit by a cyclone of this kind. So there are some real dangers that their houses and properties are not suited to withstand the storm. We also gather that the rains have been pouring down continuously. This may cause flooding.

CARE does not have staff or current partners in the area but an assessment team of five CARE staff is currently driving to the area – arriving today. CARE Mozambique is at full capacity responding to Cyclone Idai and any CARE response in the areas affected by Cyclone Kenneth will likely require the setting up of a separate response team.