The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Friday that it may be forced to suspend food aid for millions of malnourished people in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) by February due to a severe funding shortfall, Reuters reported.
“We’re at historically low levels of funding. We’ve probably received about $150 million this year,” said Cynthia Jones, the WFP country director for the DRC.
She noted that the agency requires at least $350 million to sustain food assistance for people in desperate need across the conflict-hit nation.
According to a report released Tuesday by a global food monitoring group, more than 3.2 million people in eastern DRC are facing emergency levels of acute food insecurity, marked by severe food shortages and widespread malnutrition.
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The crisis has been exacerbated by over a year of violent conflict, as Rwandan-backed M23 rebels launched a major offensive in South Kivu province earlier this year, seizing more territory than ever before.
Rwanda has denied backing the rebel group. Both M23 and Congolese forces have been accused of committing atrocities during the fighting.
Until recently, the WFP was able to reach roughly one million people each month with food assistance, but dwindling funding has forced the organization to cut that number down to 600,000.
“If we were to continue reaching 600,000 people per month, we would break completely by February, March. That’s the reality. That’s how dire the situation is,” Jones warned.
In previous years, the WFP received as much as $600 million in funding for its operations in Congo.
In 2024, that figure dropped to around $380 million, and this year it has fallen to just $150 million.
The WFP’s financial struggles mirror those of other U.N. agencies, many of which have been hit hard by major cuts in U.S. foreign aid, along with reductions in overseas assistance from several European donors redirecting funds toward defense spending.
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Image Credit: Reuters
