A deepening crisis
Bienvenu Rwizibuka, from our Companion Diocese of Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of Congo, highlights the continuing crisis in South Kivu, which is now compounded by the threat of Ebola
In eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the province of South Kivu remains a stark illustration of how protracted conflict quietly erodes human dignity. While global attention shifts from one crisis to another, millions of Congolese continue to endure a devastating combination of violence, displacement, hunger and collapsing basic services.
By April 2026, the humanitarian situation had deteriorated further. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Human Affairs (OCHA), South Kivu now hosts nearly 1.49 million internally displaced people. Recent clashes in the territories of Fizi, Kalehe, Uvira, Walungu, and Mwenga have forced tens of thousands of additional families to flee. Most, deprived of formal camps, are absorbed into already impoverished host communities, overcrowded schools, or churches. This invisible displacement places immense pressure on households that were already struggling to survive.
The consequences are severe. Food insecurity and severe, acute malnutrition thrive as armed violence damages health facilities, disrupts supply chains, and limits humanitarian aid. To address these acute shortages, organisations like the World Food Programme (WFP) have stepped up emergency distribution, providing over 1,468 tons of food to 88,292 people in Walungu, while ACTED, which provides humanitarian relief, deployed emergency cash transfers for 11,270 households in Uvira.
Health threats extend far beyond nutrition. South Kivu is actively grappling with multiple disease outbreaks that heavily impact displaced populations. According to OCHA, the province recorded 4,695 new measles cases (resulting in 42 deaths) and 889 cholera cases (3 deaths) in April alone.
An even darker shadow now looms over the region. An Ebola outbreak (Bundibugyo strain) has been declared in Ituri and North Kivu, with ‘33 confirmed cases nationwide’, warns the DRC Health Cluster Bulletin No 02. Although the provincial Health Cluster found two suspected cases in South Kivu (Kadutu and Shabunda districts) to be negative, their report stresses that the risk of infection remains exceptionally high due to excessive population movement between Goma and Bukavu. The threat of Ebola, in an area already choked by cholera, measles, and mpox, places the fragile health system on the precipice of collapse.
Despite insecurity, local resilience persists. Organisations maintain lifesaving aid, putting protection and support for survivors at the heart of the response.
This crisis reminds us of the human cost of three decades of instability and, once again, we implore the world not to look away from this catastrophic state of affairs.