A gleam of hope as aid gets to Kasai, DRC Congo

People of Kasai, Democratic Republic of Congo can breathe a sigh of relief, thanks to our partnership with World Vision and the World Food Programme (WFP). Through this partnership, we are providing food to ease their hunger problems triggered by violent conflicts.
When the war broke out in August 2016, the inhabitants of Kasai, who are predominantly farmers, fled their homes and abandoned their farm lands. Nearly 1.6 million people were displaced and about 3.2 million became food insecure.

Mphutu Makebu, a mother of three children, waited anxiously for her turn to receive food. Before the war, the 22-year-old mother from Tshimbu, a rural community within Kasai Region, had a blooming business of selling vegetables and fruits from her small farm. She was able to feed her children, send them to school and cater for her home.

Mphutu Makebu, a 22 year old mother from Tshimbu, a rural community in Kasai, DRC

“I lost everything I had during the war. My house was looted and my small farm was completely destroyed. I am forced to start all over,” explains Mphutu pinning her hopes on food aid she is receiving.
“I feel relieved to receive this food. My children have something to eat. They are able to go to school.” Mphutu explains that before she started receiving the food, her children could not go to school due to hunger.
“My children could not go to school. It was hard for them to concentrate in class because of hunger. I had no hope. I was worried of their future. I am happy to see my children going to school. I wish the distribution could go on until we start harvesting our own food,” Mphutu explains.
To maintain nutritional status of affected children and communities, we have been providing food rations comprising of; maize flour, beans, cooking oil and salt. During the month of March, 2018 we reached 103,934 beneficiaries with 864.19 Metric Tonnes of assorted food commodities.

Community members queuing to receive food

A United Nation’s World Food Program report indicates that over 300,000 children in Kasai are at risk of dying from acute malnutrition.
Under the current General Food Distribution Food Level agreement from January to June 2018, this partnership is intended to reach 120,819 beneficiaries with a total of 3,826.07 Metric tonnes of assorted food commodities.

Emergency response field staff overseeing a food distribution exercise in Tshimbu

The food insecurity situation in Kasai is likely to worsen as most families missed nearly three consecutive farming seasons as they were fleeing from war, but with a little bit of hope and your support, we will be able to help many families like Mphutu’s get through these hard times.

Remember, 100 percent of all donations made to the USANA True Health Foundation ALWAYS go toward changing lives across the world.

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