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ADVOCACY FOR KALEHE IN DRC: More than 438 people dead, more than 5,000 people missing and thousands affected following one of the biggest natural disasters in the history of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The territory of Kalehe was again bereaved this Thursday, May 04, 2023, following floods due to torrential rains that occurred in the villages of Kabushungu, Chabondo, and Nyamukubi; constituting the large village of Bushushu; in the Mbinga Sud group, Territory of Kalehe, Province of South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The tragedy that struck the entire Congolese nation reported more than 438 dead, more than 5,000 people missing to date, about 3,000 houses were affected, including about 1,200 completely destroyed; livelihoods such as livestock and fields have also suffered.

At the end of the investigations carried out by the Experts in Natural Disasters, Climate Change and Environment, the Congolese Government and other humanitarian partners; the main cause of this disaster is the destruction of ecosystems in the area, more particularly by the excessive cutting of trees by the inhabitants in search of means of subsistence and by the practice of itinerant agriculture on slash and burn. This ultimately stripped the top of the Bushushu and Nyamukubi mountains.

Faced with this alarming situation, climate actions are necessary to save these lands:

• Updating of the natural disaster risk reduction and mitigation strategy;
• The revival of the reforestation program in the mountains of South Kivu (particularly those of Mbinga-South and Mbinga-North which continue to present a permanent danger);
• The restoration of the Bukavu-Goma national road, in order to restore vital road traffic for the populations of North-Kivu and South-Kivu;
• Support for the construction of decent, sustainable and climate-resilient housing.