The road out of Goma is a river of humanity - women, children, the elderly, and men carrying bundles of belongings. Theirs is a story of fear and uncertainty, and each footstep is a plea for survival.
“There is not a minute to lose,” says Peter Musoko, the World Food Programme’s country director for DRC.
For the people of eastern DRC, this is not the first time they have had to flee their homes due to violence. This time, however, the scale of displacement and suffering is staggering, with communities being uprooted overnight under heavy artillery as violence escalates
At the heart of the unfolding crisis is the fall of Goma, the largest city in eastern DRC and an important humanitarian hub.
“Goma falling is the worst thing that we could possibly imagine happening in North Kivu,” says WFP Mr. Musoko. “It means we have an urban city centre with a lot of vulnerable people, all looking for assistance. We face the gigantic task of determining who is the most vulnerable.”
WFP, alongside other humanitarian organisations, is monitoring the situation and working round the clock to provide food, water and emergency aid to those affected.
For now, “safety is paramount,” says Mr. Musoko. The aim is to reach 800,000 people across North Kivu, South Kivu, and Ituri. But with 5.1 million people already displaced across the three eastern DRC states before the current crisis, the numbers are daunting.
For those fleeing, the challenges are brutal. They have to trek long distances carrying their few belongings in the hope of reaching shelter with relatives or elsewhere, often in overcrowded conditions.
The conditions are dire and these people need beddings, medical supplies, food and clean water – while women and girls are particularly at risk in a country where rape is widespread.
Before the recent escalation, nearly a quarter of the country’s 25.6 million people were already in ‘crisis’ and ‘emergency’ levels of food security, according to the Integrated Food Phase Classification.
In the coming five months or so, 4.5 million children under five, and 3.7 million pregnant and breastfeeding women are expected to face acute malnutrition.
Urgent call for action
As the situation deteriorates, the WFP is making an urgent call for action.
“What we need right now is urgent financing so we can move quickly to reel back this spiraling crisis,” says Mr. Musoko. “We have to fuel hope with action.”
The situation requires donors to step up. WFP requires $410 million to sustain its operations across DRC through June 2025 to fund vital programmes such as nutrition clinics, school feeding programmes, and projects supporting female farmers and small businesses.
This will bolster assistance to 1.5 million people per month in parts of the east of DRC where needs are highest.
“There is not a minute to lose,” warns Mr. Musoko.
Without these resources, millions of people will suffer in DRC and the ripple effect could extend across the region and beyond.
Despite its immense scale, the humanitarian crisis in DRC often fails to capture the necessary global attention.
“DRC is forgotten,” Mr. Musoko admits. “People find it very complicated. But too many people have died. Too many people are suffering. This is an unnecessary conflict, causing unnecessary suffering. We need the international community to come together and say ‘enough.’”
