More than 80% of health facilities in eastern Congo are out of medicine,
Red Cross says
[October 09, 2025]
By JEAN-YVES KAMALE
KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Over 200 health facilities in eastern Congo are
experiencing shortages of medicines as a result of fighting in the
region and a lack of humanitarian funding, the International Committee
of the Red Cross said Wednesday.
The Red Cross said it assessed 240 health centers and clinics in North
and South Kivu, two provinces where the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels made an
unprecedented advance earlier this year, further deepening one of the
world’s largest humanitarian crises.
The difficulties in crossing front lines in the war-hit regions have
prevented health facilities from getting access to medicine, even when
it is available, the ICRC said.
“The lives of thousands of people are at stake,” due to the shortage of
essential medicine against malaria, HIV, tuberculosis, and other
diseases, François Moreillon, the head of the ICRC’s delegation in
Congo, said during a news conference Wednesday.
Many humanitarian organizations supporting health facilities in the
region have been forced to reduce their work or shutdown because of a
lack of funding, he added.
“Currently, more than 80 per cent of health facilities in the Kivu
provinces receive no support from humanitarian partners and are only
operational thanks to the remarkable commitment of their staff on both
sides of the front lines,” Moreillon said.
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In this Saturday, July 13, 2019 file photo, a person is vaccinated
against Ebola in Beni, Congo. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File)
 Many health workers have also fled
the war-torn regions, leading to staff shortages in almost half of
the facilities assessed by the ICRC, according to the organization.
Congo’s mineral-rich east has long been battered by fighting
involving more than 100 armed groups including the Rwanda-backed M23
rebels. The rebels seized the provincial capitals Goma and Bukavu
earlier this year, escalating the decades-old conflict.
The rebels' advance has killed some 3,000 people this year and
worsened what was already one of the world’s largest humanitarian
crises, with around 7 million people displaced. While fighting has
largely decreased as a result of peace efforts, there are still
clashes and civilians are still being killed.
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