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DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF
THE CONGO
>> AFR Regional Overview >> Congo Overview
Development Challenge Summary Tables
Program Summary
Previous Years' Activities
2001, 2000, 199946
Introduction
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is the third largest country on the continent and home to roughly 50 million people. Nine countries border the DRC, and shifting alliances both within and across its border position the DRC as a key partner, or a key threat, to U.S. humanitarian interests in central Africa. Its immense base of natural and mineral resources (cobalt, diamonds, gold, copper, colombo-tantalite, and timber) holds enormous potential and will influence the stability of much of the rest of Africa. Seventy-seven percent of the DRC is forested and its exceptional biodiversity, rainforests and massive river systems constitute one of the globe's rare rain forests.
However, the Congo is in crisis. Prolonged conflict and deepening humanitarian crisis, brought about by war and years of political and economic mismanagement, has spawned instability across central Africa and threatens U.S. interests in the region. U.S. Government assistance focuses on fostering political, social and economic stability and stanching the widening humanitarian disaster. Assistance to the DRC advances U.S. interests by bringing stability to a country and a sub-region torn by wars, by reducing poverty, by conserving its unique biodiversity and by stemming the spread of infectious and re-emerging diseases, including HIV/AIDS and polio. The program in the DRC supports USAID's new priority areas of economic growth, global health, relief, and conflict prevention.
The Development Challenge
The DRC is classified as a heavily indebted poor country (HIPC), with a public external debt of $13.5 billion as of December 31, 2000, or ten times the country's yearly export of goods and services. Domestic debt arrears exceed $9 billion. The DRC's political situation is highly unstable and complex. The country's economic performance remains dismal, reflected by continued decline in output and increases in the inflation rate from 325% in 1999 to 531% in 2000. The accumulated debt and the nation's decline are largely due to the on-going war, and decades of corruption and mismanagement of its resources by former Presidents Mobutu and Kabila. Per capita income has dropped from $361 in 1960 to below $100 in 2000. Over 80% of the DRC's population live in absolute poverty.
A new leadership emerged in the DRC in January 2001, after the assassination of President Laurent Kabila. President Joseph Kabila has succeeded his father and has indicated a commitment to political openness and dialogue. His strategy focuses on bringing peace and recovery to the DRC. President Joseph Kabila's pronouncements and actions thus far provide new prospects for peace, democracy and socio-economic improvements in the DRC. Positive steps towards a new political orientation have recently been undertaken in the areas of human rights and rule of law as political prisoners are freed, secret detention centers are closed and political dialogue has begun. Despite these positive prospects, lasting peace remains elusive. The demands of the war have disrupted all key areas of economic, political and social life. The judicial and civil service sectors are non-functional. As successive governments have been unable or unwilling to provide resources to the social sectors, the delivery of social services has collapsed. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) carry the burden of providing basic social services. The Catholic and Protestant Churches alone support over 60% of the education and health care delivery services.
The health infrastructure in the DRC has virtually collapsed in many areas and women and children are at particular risk. Infant mortality is 148 per 1,000 and a 3.2% population growth has the potential to erode any improvements in the standard of living. Maternal mortality is extremely high with some 1,837 women dying out of every 100,000 live births. Routine immunization systems have ceased to function in many parts of the country, resulting in frequent epidemic outbreaks of communicable childhood diseases. In addition to wild poliovirus, the DRC has perhaps the most extensive collection of known and emerging infectious diseases in the world. As a result of lack of health services, compounded by the desperate poverty, outbreaks of rare diseases, once virtually eradicated (e.g. sleeping sickness, TB and river blindness), have reappeared. HIV/AIDS infection rates in the general population before the war, ranged between approximately 6 to 10 percent. However, HIV/AIDS infection rates in foreign African armies engaged in the conflict in the DRC are reported to be much higher. Limited data suggests that as a result prevalence rates for HIV/AIDS infections among certain groups in eastern and southern provinces are rising.
Most of the DRC's vast territory is inaccessible due to decades of collapsed infrastructure. Without roads, the Congo River basin became the major artery for transport until rebel forces cut even this vehicle for the delivery of goods and services from the interior to the capital. Food shortages, particularly for urban populations, have increased. The DRC suffers from intense environmental degradation, deforestation, soil erosion and flooding. Poverty and war have encouraged large-scale deforestation, pillage and depletion of the DRC's vast equatorial forest and natural and mineral resources.
In late 2000, USAID/DRC launched an integrated humanitarian and health program which delivers critical health, nutrition, food security and other emergency interventions in an effort to reduce high levels of excess mortality and suffering. The program combines and focuses development and humanitarian resources to increase both physical and economic access to basic services. Health development funds will be used to strengthen health service delivery in over 60 rural health zones throughout the country while emergency funds provide life-saving interventions along front-line areas and among displaced populations. Food for Peace resources delivered through the World Food Program for both emergency food distribution and food security activities. Where feasible, health, food aid, emergency and development resources (funds from the USAID Bureau of Humanitarian Response (BHR) and the DRC mission) will complement and build on each fund's strength to respond to immediate needs and longer-term health and food security development in an effort to move the DRC beyond the immediate crisis.
Other Donors
Most donor assistance is provided through international organizations and NGOs. Most of it is humanitarian assistance. The European Union is the major provider of assistance with a contribution of approximately $50 million annually. Based on recent political developments, the EU has committed new funding to the DRC. This includes a $25 million contribution to the justice sector reform program, $35 million in emergency assistance and a $108 million development support fund. A World Bank trust fund made available $5 million to support initiatives in privatization of parastatals. Through the 2001 Consolidated Appeal, the UN system is seeking $139.0 million in funding to support humanitarian and development programs in the DRC.
FY 2002 Program
USAID is positioned to respond swiftly to opportunities in support of the implementation of the July 1999 cease-fire in the DRC. Such support is critical in order to encourage further advances in implementation of the Agreement and lay the foundation for democracy. Implementation will continue through partnership with civil society and NGOs but will allow limited, well-targeted support to the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (GDRC) in child survival and infectious disease sectors. USAID focuses on assisting Congolese people to resolve national, provincial, and community problems through participatory processes involving the public, private, and civil sectors.
In the health sector, USAID's successful child survival, infectious disease, HIV/AIDS control, and primary health care activities will be expanded to all eleven provinces. The capacity of national and non-governmental health delivery institutions will be strengthened. USAID will help support the eradication of polio, the prevention of vaccine preventable diseases and diarrhea, and improved child nutrition. USAID-funded activities will help seek to better control malaria, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases and will assist the country to position itself to better respond to epidemics and outbreaks of rare and infectious diseases. It will continue to help support an expanded HIV/AIDS prevention and control program, targeting high-risk groups and people living with HIV/AIDS, while providing assistance to develop reliable baseline data as the basis for better surveillance. The primary health care system will be revitalized and supported comprehensively throughout the DRC in 60 rural health zones.
In democracy and governance, USAID will continue to support civil society and strengthen its role as a partner to the GDRC in building a politically stable country. USAID will support the Inter-Congolese Dialogue and subsequent democratic initiatives, which would be generated by the dialogue. Under provisions of new legislation, USAID will also assist the GDRC in anti-corruption activities and will support increasing the capacity of human rights NGOs for coalition building, advocacy, information development and dissemination, litigation and representation. Through the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) and the Law Group, USAID will continue to work on refining the draft constitution. USAID will also strengthen the capacity of key NGOs to provide access to legal services to individuals and groups, will actively support a transition to a democratically elected government, will expand the assistance to NGOs for the provision of information and Internet connectivity beyond Kinshasa to 22 secondary cities in eleven provinces. Assistance and training will be provided to private and independent news organizations and reporters for more balanced news reporting. USAID will continue to support education of the girls. Finally, the program will support demobilization of child soldiers, training and reintegration of child soldiers into their communities and support protection of vulnerable and street children, orphans and victims of torture.
Through programs designed to enhance household food security and reduce poverty in selected communities, USAID will focus on meeting the critical food needs of targeted groups through emergency food aid, sustaining agricultural production, promoting sustainable natural resources management, and expanding private sector markets. Productivity and quality of life will be increased through human capacity development and training of girls, demobilized child soldiers and vulnerable youth. USAID will enhance institutional capacity building in the environmental sector, continue to support policy changes, and promote private initiatives to protect the environment. Interventions will include environmental advocacy, reinforcing community awareness, and continued support to World Heritage Sites. Micro-credit programs, micro-enterprise initiatives and support to natural resource-based industries, which create jobs, stimulate increased production and income while enhancing livelihoods, will also continue to be an important part of the program.
Activity Data Sheets
- 660-001, Congolese People Are Assisted to Solve National, Provincial and Community Problems through Participatory Processes That Involve the Public, Private and Civil Sectors
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Last Updated on: May 29, 2002 |
