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DRC: Malaria still biggest killer
KINSHASA, 28 April 2008 (IRIN) - Exaucée Makembi, aged three, has been very
weak for three days and sleeps in the arms of her mother, Tina Nzongola, who
has taken her to a health centre on the outskirts of Kinshasa.
She is suffering from malaria. The doctor prescribed water-soluble artesunate,
but Nzongola complains she does not have the funds to buy it, as it costs
around US$5.
Other patients lie on beds next to her - young and old - taking quinine and antibiotics because their cases, according to the nurse,
are serious.
"Most of the patients we receive have malaria," said Baby Bilo, a
consultant at another health centre in the area.
The situation is repeated all over the country.
"Today, malaria is the primary cause of sickness and death in the country
as it is in Africa, despite the efforts made," said Yacouba Zina, head of
the malaria project of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and
Malaria.
On average, five million cases of malaria, according to him, are
registered every year throughout the country with a population of nearly
60 million.
Between 500,000 and one million people die of the disease every year.
However, according to the National Programme for the Struggle against Malaria (PNLP), some success has been noted. "Medicines
have been distributed to the sick, insecticide-treated bed nets have been
distributed and awareness-raising campaigns have been conducted,"
explained the deputy head of the PNLP, Jean Angbalu.
According to him, the Congolese government since 2006 has taken an integrated
approach to tackling the disease, including insecticide-treated bed nets.
"Treated bed nets have either been donated or cost 50 US cents, while
other partners are selling them at 18 cents," Angbalu said.
Zina said the Global Fund, like other partners (the European Union and the
World Bank), had ensured that the new drugs artesunate and amodiaquine are sold
at 10 percent of their true value.
Nevertheless, he notes, the number of malaria cases seemed to be rising.
There are multiple reasons for this.
The first is that, according to Zina, malaria is endemic in the DRC owing to its geographical location.
The lack of access to the new drugs for most of the population is another reason, he said. In addition, the new strategy had improved
the means of detection, prompting many more people to go for a test, and
diagnosis is quick.
Resistance
"There has been an upward trend in the number of malaria cases and there
are also many more of the serious cases because of resistance [to certain drugs
used hitherto] owing, among other things, to self-medication," Zina said.
"And this translates into a high mortality rate among infants, owing to the resistance," he said.
In addition, said Zina and Angbalu, the new drugs, although sold 10 times cheaper thanks to the partnership with international
organisations, were not readily available to most of the population.
Nor has the distribution of bed nets been universal. According to Angbalu, only 35 health zones out of 515 were covered.
But the Global Fund programme envisages covering 120 health zones. Partners, such as the World Bank and the EU, will be able to
take on others.
More could be done in terms of prevention, said Zina. Formal education on hygiene issues, or via the media, had not been carried out
sufficiently, he said.
"Furthermore, the bed nets given out are insufficient, as they are
distributed only to pregnant women and children under five, while other family
members are left out and exposed to the disease," he said. ei/cb/mw[END]
DRC: Hidden killers on the loose
KINSHASA, 16 April 2008 (IRIN) - The full extent of the threat posed by
landmines and other unexploded ordnance in the Democratic Republic of Congo is
unknown but the deadly weapons are a daily concern for tens of thousands of
displaced people in the east.
"Mines and UXOs [unexploded ordnance] are strewn all over the
countryside," Francesca Fontanini, external relations officer for the UN
Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in DRC, said. "They are among the most pernicious
consequences of the armed conflict."
The mines and UXOs, according to the agency, could affect the return and
reintegration of an estimated 800,000 people displaced by years of fighting in
North Kivu.
They are also a danger to those who may return home to areas with unmapped
minefields. Children are particularly vulnerable because some of the weapons
look like toys.
"In Dongo, five children who had just [been] repatriated died after a
grenade exploded as they were playing with it," Philippe Sondizi Dombale,
head of Humanitas Ubangi, a local NGO in Molegbe, northern DRC, told IRIN in
the capital Kinshasa.
"Another boy died in Gbadolite after a landmine he had been using for
several days as a hammer - out of ignorance - blew up in his face."
More than 892 people have been killed and 1,118 injured by these deadly weapons
since 2001, say activists.
The DRC government ratified the global anti-personnel mine ban treaty in 2002,
but activists say very little has been done to implement it. And no
comprehensive impact surveys have been conducted because of the volatile
security situation across the country in addition to logistical difficulties.
"Up to now little has been done ... a choice has to be made [between] the
mines continuing to cause casualties and the most urgent thing - to try to stop
it," Harouna Ouedraogo, programme director of the UN Mine Action
Coordination Centre (UNMACC), said.
The government says work is ongoing to address the plight of victims.
"Legislation regarding the rights of victims to assistance is being drawn
up," interior minister Denis Kalume said during the International Mine
Action Day celebrations on 4 April in Kinshasa.
"A focal point will be created for coordination and we will work closely
with our international partners so that national competency in this area can be
achieved," he added.
The government, he emphasised, was committed to fulfilling its obligations
under the Ottawa (Mine Ban) treaty.
Clean-up programmes
According to Mine Advisory Group (MAG) country director Marc Angibeaud,
de-mining efforts through international NGOs such as MAG, Handicap
International and DanChurchAid, have cleared the countryside of thousands of
anti-personnel mines and UXO, especially in Equateur, Maniema, Katanga and
South Kivu provinces.
Work has also been done by the commercial de-mining company, Mechem.
From June 2007 to January 2008, more than 28,000 sqkm of land was cleared; over
3,500 weapons, 5,000 UXO and 35,000 items of ammunition destroyed, and mine
education sessions conducted for over 10,000 people. De-miners have also been
trained.
"Clearance activities have not only prevented accidents from explosions
but also freed land for agriculture and rendered safe many roads and a water
source crucial to the villagers' daily activities," MAG noted in a 31
January statement.
"The destruction of the ammunition also means it will not be available for
trafficking - a significant problem in the Great Lakes region - thus
contributing to regional peace-building."
Another NGO, Synergie pour la Lutte Anti Mines (SYLAM), is teaching internally
displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees in North Kivu how to spot half-buried or
fully exposed explosive devices and what to do.
SYLAM has recorded 111 deaths and 127 injuries caused by these weapons in North
Kivu since 2003 - though none yet inside IDP camps. Together with the UNMACC
and other NGOs, it has identified 51 polluted sites.
Ouedraogo, however, said the achievements so far were merely the tip of the iceberg. As long as much of the country remained
inaccessible and the people remained poor and ignorant, the problem would
prevail. There were reports, for example, of some people using the explosives
for fishing.
According to the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), both rebel and
government forces used anti-personnel mines during the DRC's numerous
conflicts. There have been no reports of use of anti-personnel mines by
government forces, however, since the DRC signed the landmine treaty.
Since May 2006, an increasing number of small arms and ammunition, UXO and
mines have been handed over to authorities. From 2003 to May 2006, some 2,244
mines were destroyed.
But the problem remains huge. Surveys by DanChurchAid covering 153,000 sqkm in
Katanga, South Kivu and Maniema, for example, found 171 mined and 583
UXO-contaminated areas.
De-mining is an expensive business and in DRC, where infrastructure is lacking,
it becomes even more difficult.
The UN Mission in Congo (MONUC) says work has been slowed down by several
key challenges - survey and mapping sites, provision of adequate assistance to
victims, awareness-raising and the creation of mine legislation. As a result,
landmines and UXOs continue to hamper economic development, and maim and kill
hundreds in the vast country every year.
"Millions in the DRC continue to live with the daily fear of being killed
or disabled," Ross Mountain, Deputy Special Representative of the UN
Secretary-General in the DRC, said on 4 April. "Much has been done, but a
lot of challenges remain." ei/cb/eo/mw[END]
DRC: Torrential rains kill 15 and leave
hundreds homeless
KINSHASA, 8 April 2008
(IRIN) - Fifteen people have died and hundreds more were left homeless after
days of torrential rains in Kasai Occidental and Bandundu provinces of the
Democratic Republic of Congo, a humanitarian official told IRIN.
"At least 500 people have been left without shelter; some are still sleeping in the rubble of their houses while others have
found refuge with their neighbours," Marie-Madeleine Kaneku, the director
of the NGO Carotas in Luebo district of Kasai Occidental, said.
The dead included three children aged between six and 10, who died when the walls of their homes collapsed. Others were seriously
injured.
At least 100 houses were destroyed by the torrential rains and the accompanying
strong winds on 2 April in the town of Tshikapa, Kaneku said.
"Two schools have also been damaged by the rains," she said.
Heavy rains were also reported in Tshikapa, 101km away, where a hospital was destroyed. "The main building at the health centre
of Kapemba was damaged," she said.
"Following the damage to the health centre we were forced to evacuate all the sick," François Kamudji, the medical director at
the hospital, said.
Kamudji said the damaged building was one of two that had remained after three other buildings had been destroyed by previous heavy
rains. The hospital was built in 1950.
"We are in a very difficult situation and we will not be able to deal with any cases of emergency surgery; the medication and
healthcare equipment was destroyed by the rain," he said.
The heavy rains covered a stretch of 350km. Kaneku said those affected by the
rains had not yet received help. ei/aw/eo/mw[END]
DRC: Fear, uncertainty deter North Kivu
IDPs from going home
GOMA, 26 March 2008 (IRIN) - Hundreds of thousands of internally displaced
persons (IDPs) in North Kivu Province in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
are reluctant to go back to their villages for fear of attacks despite a truce
signed in January between the government and various armed groups.
"We fled our house because [armed groups] were attacking and raping people
and looting property," said Gina Kavira, 38, who fled with her husband and
eight children from the village of Bambou five months ago and who has been
living with a host family in three cramped rooms in Vitshumbi on the shores of
Lake Edward.
"There is not enough to eat here. I try and catch fish. Normally, I catch
three in a day. I sell two and feed my family on the other," she told
IRIN. "My children can't go to school because we can't afford school fees.
I'd like to return home if there was peace and if I could afford the transport.
All we want is peace. I don't know when we will be able to
return."
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) will build a new shelter on a 54-hectare site
near the town of Rutshuru to alleviate congestion in other IDP camps. UNHCR
senior field officer Marie-Antoinette Okimba said the camp will cater for an
estimated 16,000 people.
The new camp at Nahanga is intended to relieve pressure on communities in the
towns of Rutshuru and Kiwanja, which have hosted 65,000 IDPs since October
2007.
According to the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), 70 percent of IDPs in North Kivu
live with host families, while only 30 percent actually live in formal IDP
camps.
Many displaced people are also occupying communal spaces, such as churches,
village halls and classrooms.
"In the beginning it is very easy for host communities to look after
newly-arrived IDPs, but after a few months it causes big problems," said
Okimba. "To provide food and shelter after long periods becomes very
difficult."
The ceasefire agreement, signed on 23 January in the North Kivu capital Goma,
called for an immediate cessation of hostilities, disengagement of troops and
the creation of a buffer zone.
Parties to the pact include the government and armed groups such as the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP),
headed by renegade general Laurent Nkunda, as well as traditional warriors of
shifting alliances generically referred to as Mayi Mayi.
A Hutu-dominated armed group many of whose members fled Rwanda after the 1994
genocide, the Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda (FDLR), has also
been party to the conflict in eastern DRC. However, it was not included in the
January agreement because it is considered one of the foreign armed groups in
DRC, which should be dealt with according to the provisions of a separate
agreement signed in Nairobi in November 2007. Under this deal the FDLR should
be disarmed and its members repatriated to Rwanda.
According to Venetia Holland, a civilian official of the UN Mission in Congo
(MONUC), despite the nominal ceasefire agreement, incidents of extortion,
sexual violence, lootings, abduction, forced labour, killings and even alleged
massacres continue to be perpetrated by both elements believed to be members of
FDLR and some signatories of the Goma accord.
Okimba said that some civilians had tried to return home only to become victims
of the violence.
"In the beginning of March many IDPs in the Rutshuru region tried to
return to their homes, but they are coming back to the safety of the camps
saying that [troops loyal to Nkunda] are accusing them of aiding and helping
other troops," she said.
Civilians have often been caught between rival forces and accused of complicity
with the "opposition" by the various rival groups.
Around Rutshuru, the IDP
camps of Kasasa and Nyongera, which cater for a combined population of 13,000,
are heavily overcrowded, sparking fears of an imminent cholera outbreak.
Elinor Raikes, the Rapid Response Mechanism Coordinator with the International
Rescue Committee, said: "The situation in the camps is very precarious.
Both camps are completely saturated and unless a solution is found quickly then
there's a very high risk of public health problems like cholera."
In Kasasa, 60 people share each latrine; a figure that is three times the
recommended standard of 20 people per latrine, according to Raikes.
Commissions set up to outline the implementation modalities of the Goma deal,
which are chaired by the government and include representatives from all the
signatory armed groups, are expected to begin their work before the end of
March.
Holland, however, said it is unlikely that the protection situation will
improve significantly, or that there will be any mass return and reintegration
of IDPs until civilians witness a real military withdrawal on the ground. hh/jn/sr/am [END]
DRC: Rise in TB cases linked to co-infection with HIV
KINSHASA, 25 March 2008 (PLUSNEWS) - Efforts to combat the spread of
tuberculosis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have been slowed down by
the problem of TB patients also infected with HIV, local health officials said.
"The disease [TB] is on the increase because there is a link with HIV -
there are co-infected patients. These are the patients who have caused the
number of TB cases to be on the rise," said Guylaine Tshitenge, an
activist of the NGO National anti-Tuberculosis League in Congo, during a march
organised in Kinshasa on 24 March to mark the World Day to Combat Tuberculosis.
Minister of Health Makwenge Kaput said close to 100,000 cases of TB were
recorded in DRC in 2006, ranking the country 11th of the 22 states most affected
by tuberculosis in the world, and 4th in Africa.
"TB is still a serious public health problem despite the policy of free
medication available across the country," said Makwenge.
He said people infected with TB took too long to seek treatment after developing
the first cough, one of the symptoms of the disease.
"So they continue not only transmitting germs of tuberculosis in the
community, but they also run the risk of dying of this disease," Makwenge
added.
According to the World Health Organization's (WHO) Global Tuberculosis Control
2008 released on 17 March, the pace of progress to control the TB epidemic
slowed slightly in 2006. From 2001 to 2005, the average rate at which new TB
cases were detected was increasing by six percent per year, but between 2005
and 2006 that rate of increase was cut in half, to three percent.
The agency attributed the slowdown in detection to the fact that some national
programmes that were making rapid progress were unable to continue at the same
pace in 2006.
"Moreover, in most African countries there has been no increase in the
detection of TB cases through national programmes. Other studies have also
shown that many patients are treated by private care providers, and by
non-governmental, faith-based and community organisations, thus escaping
detection by the public programmes," the report said.
Tuberculosis is an airborne infectious disease. People with the TB bacteria in
their lungs can infect others when they cough.
An estimated 1.5 million people died from TB in 2006, according to WHO. Another
20