WHO: Henrietta F. Fore, Executive Director, UNICEF

Mark Lowcock, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator

WHAT: Mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo

WHEN: 17-20 March for USG Lowcock and 17-21 for ED Fore

WHERE: Kinshasa and Ituri and North Kivu provinces

UNICEF’s Executive Director Henrietta F. Fore and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock will visit the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) from 17 to 21 March.

The humanitarian situation in DRC is one of the largest and most complex in the world. Nearly 13 million Congolese are facing food insecurity in 2019, including over 4 million malnourished children, of whom at least 1.3 million are severely malnourished. The latest Ebola outbreak in North Kivu and Ituri has killed more than 500 people, while cholera and measles continue to spread and sexual and gender-based violence remains widespread.

Mr. Lowcock and Ms. Fore will meet with Government officials and other stakeholders in Kinshasa and travel to parts of North Kivu and Ituri provinces, to see first-hand the humanitarian situation and response, including to the Ebola epidemic, and meet with people affected by the crisis.

The 2019 Humanitarian Response Plan requires US$1.65 billion to provide 9 million people with life-saving assistance. Of this amount, UNICEF needs $326 million to meet the humanitarian needs of 4.3 million children.