The worsening Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is deepening food insecurity in a region already grappling with one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has warned.
Speaking during a visit to Ituri province on Wednesday, WFP Acting Executive Director Carl Skau described the situation as a “crisis on top of a crisis,” warning that the Ebola outbreak is making an already desperate food situation even worse.
“It was already catastrophic when it comes to food and security. Some five million people are in emergency levels of food insecurity and there are also pockets of disaster-level food insecurity. Now with the Ebola crisis, this is getting worse,” Skau said.
He said disruptions to markets and supply routes caused by the outbreak have further limited people’s access to food, leaving vulnerable communities facing increased hunger.
The WFP said nearly 10 million people across eastern Congo are experiencing crisis or emergency levels of food insecurity as a result of prolonged conflict. Ituri, which is at the epicentre of the Ebola outbreak, is among the worst-affected areas, with about 1.9 million people facing severe hunger.
Across 48 health zones affected by Ebola, more than 2.7 million people are experiencing acute food insecurity, including about 628,000 people facing emergency conditions, according to the WFP.
As part of its response, the U.N. food agency has delivered more than 160,000 hot meals to patients, contacts and frontline workers across 17 treatment and isolation centres.
Skau stressed that ensuring continued access to food is critical to controlling the outbreak, warning that people preoccupied with finding their next meal may struggle to follow public health guidance.
He said people “will continue to be more concerned about what to eat tomorrow than to follow the guidance that they are provided in terms of the Ebola crisis.”
The Ebola outbreak, described by officials as the fastest-moving in history, has recorded 3,360 confirmed cases, including 1,487 deaths, since it was declared on May 15.
Health authorities have warned that the virus continues to spread faster than officials can adequately track, despite an expanding emergency response.
