An airplane from the UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency, carrying much-needed goods has arrived in Luanda, Angola, to help the 11,000 people who have fled the recent violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
An airplane from the UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency, carrying much-needed goods has arrived in Luanda, Angola, to help the 11,000 people who have fled the recent violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The flight, made by UPS, is leaving Sunday morning from Dubai, with a carriage of 3,500 tiles and 100 plastic rollers to separate them from the fire; 17,000 materials, 16,902 thermal pile coperte, 8,000 zanzariere, 3,640 kitchen sets, 8,000 tanks and 4,000 plastic dryers. The UNHCR plans to send another batch in the next few days.
The brutal conflict that is affecting the Congolese Kasai region, which is no stranger to such violence, has already caused more than a million deaths in the country since it began in mid-2016.
The humanitarian aid will be distributed in the Dundo area, where the refugees are being housed from the beginning of April in provincial aid centers. The refugees, including around 4,000 children, are arriving exhausted, many of whom are showing signs of violence and have very few benefits and risks. Because of the sovraffollamento, the conditions in the centers are critical.
"Those who arrive urgently need primary assistance, including food, water, shelter and medical services," says Sharon Cooper, UNHCR Regional Representative for Southern Africa. "UNHCR is also providing food distribution to support the most vulnerable, including babies, pregnant women and the elderly."
A UNHCR emergency team is present both in Luanda and in Dundo to respond to the needs of the refugees and to coordinate the humanitarian response with the government, local authorities and partners in the field.
The government is planning to set up a new site in Nzaji, in the Camulo commune, about 90 kilometres from the border. The site was previously used to house Angolan civil war soldiers. Preparations are underway to carry out a check of the area, in the event that shelters, latrines, docks and water points are used to transfer asylum seekers.
The camp is controlled by the Angolan army. The United Nations Agency for Refugees has called on the government to allow refugees to continue to cross the border, to allow UNHCR access to manage new arrivals and not to repatriate those fleeing the violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Angola currently hosts around 56,700 refugees and asylum seekers, of whom around 25,000 come from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
UNHCR's annual budget in Angola for the protection and assistance of around 46,000 people was initially around 2.5 million dollars. In response to the current emergency, UNHCR is requesting a total of 5.5 million dollars to provide immediate life-saving assistance.
The UPS is one of the main UNHCR partners in emergency management. Every year, the UPS Foundation guarantees logistical expertise, funds and services to support and improve our response to emergencies and to provide life-saving assistance to families forced to flee.
Source:https://www.unhcr.it/news/angola-aiuti-aerei-dellunhcr-soccorso-ai-rifugiati-appena-arrivati-dalla-repubblica-democratica-del-congo.html 03.05.2017