DR Congo grappling with food insecurity as impact of reduced foreign aid is laid bare

WorldEnvironment
7 May 2026 • 2:06 AM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

DR Congo grappling with food insecurity as impact of reduced foreign aid is laid bare

  • The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is grappling with severe food insecurity, especially in its capital, Kinshasa, due to climate change, prolonged conflict, and a struggling economy.
  • Régis Ngudie from Mapendo Banque Alimentaire in Kinshasa explains that high food prices, driven by economic challenges and increased fuel costs from international conflicts, make food inaccessible despite its availability.
  • Kinshasa, a rapidly expanding megacity, faces overwhelming pressure on public services, compounded by climate shocks and a significant influx of internally displaced people from the country's eastern conflict.
  • Ibrahima Diallo of the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) in the DRC reports that a drastic decline in foreign aid has severely hampered humanitarian efforts, limiting assistance to only one million of the five million people requiring food aid.
  • The reduction in aid forces WFP to focus on emergency relief rather than long-term climate resilience initiatives, a situation that could prolong aid dependency and reflects a global trend of increasing food crises alongside decreasing international assistance.

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