DRC Displacement Camp Lacks Water and Sanitation

At the Kigonze camp for displaced people on the outskirts of Bunia, the capital of Ituri Province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, residents face daily shortages of clean water while health authorities warn of Ebola transmission risks. Since early morning, women and children have lined up at water points with empty yellow jerrycans.

m. without obtaining a single container of water, leaving residents unable to wash their hands.

Local media citing camp officials estimate that at least 11,700 people live in the camp across about 2,600 households, though some local sources say the actual population may be higher. The head of the camp stated that Kigonze has recorded no confirmed Ebola cases.

Overcrowded shelters made of worn tarpaulins and wood allow rainwater to seep inside during seasonal rains, turning the ground to mud. Many latrines are damaged, overflowing, or unusable, with wastewater flowing near living areas. A displaced mother of seven pointed to the muddy ground around her shelter and said the conditions make it difficult to avoid disease.

A displaced father of six identified sanitation facilities as the camp's most pressing problem.

The DRC government declared the Ebola outbreak on May 15 after laboratory confirmation of the Bundibugyo strain in Ituri Province. The virus has since spread across health zones in Ituri, North Kivu, and South Kivu. The outbreak has infected 676 people and killed 136 as of June 14.

Response efforts face challenges including uncertainty over initial cases, lack of an approved vaccine for the Bundibugyo strain, community mistrust, and ongoing insecurity. The camp head has spent recent days walking through the settlement with a megaphone urging residents to wash hands regularly and maintain distance from others.