06 08 12 UN humanitarian chief to visit DR Congo and Rwanda next week

UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief
Coordinator Valerie Amos is expected to discuss ways of strengthening
relief efforts and mobilizing additional assistance, including financial
support, with Congolese and Rwandan authorities and other humanitarian
partners.

According to the UN Office for the Coordinator of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA),
fighting in DRC’s North Kivu province has led to the displacement of
more than a quarter of a million people in recent weeks, including tens
of thousands across the borders into Rwanda and Uganda.

Since 2009, armed conflict in the eastern part of the country has internally displaced some 2.2 million people.

During the 6 to 9 August visit, Ms. Amos will visit North Kivu to see
first-hand the humanitarian impact of the conflict and the relief
efforts, and on Thursday she is expected to travel to Rwanda, where she
plans to visit a camp hosting Congolese refugees.

She will also visit Kinshasa and Kigali, the capitals of the DRC and Rwanda, respectively.