The Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD) has issued an urgent call for international solidarity and increased funding to support frontline responders in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Speaking at the Paris Conference on the Great Lakes Region, Caritas Congo Executive Secretary Abbé Edouard Makimba emphasized the commitment of local faith-based workers who continue risking their lives to provide aid and protection despite diminishing resources. He appealed to global leaders and donors to recognize and reinforce their efforts amid worsening humanitarian conditions.
Hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron, the conference gathered donor nations and UN leaders to address the severe impact of global aid cuts in the DRC and neighboring countries. The funding crisis has intensified challenges for millions of displaced people, strained host communities in Burundi and Uganda, and left millions of Congolese without essential humanitarian assistance. UN estimates reveal that over 21 million people in the DRC need aid, yet only 6.8 million currently receive UN support due to reduced funding.
Faith-based organizations, particularly the Catholic Church and CAFOD’s local partner Caritas Congo, play a critical role in delivering life-saving services. Together, they manage over 40% of health facilities, around 60% of primary schools, and more than 80% of state-approved schools across the DRC. Despite providing millions of dollars’ worth of aid to displaced families, recent funding cuts of about 60% have severely limited their capacity to maintain essential health and food security programs. The shortage of medicines for diseases like HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria is already leading to preventable deaths.
Even as many international agencies have withdrawn due to escalating conflict, local staff and church organizations have remained on the ground, continuing humanitarian operations under dire conditions. Abbé Makimba described the aid cuts as a “man-made crisis,” urging that international pledges should directly strengthen local and faith-based responses. He praised France’s efforts to mobilize donor support and called for sustained investment in community-led initiatives.
CAFOD’s Executive Director, Christine Allen, underscored that the Paris Conference must serve as a wake-up call for renewed global commitment. She warned that shrinking aid budgets are failing to match the growing scale of humanitarian need and stressed the moral responsibility of wealthier nations to respond. Similarly, Bernard Balibuno, CAFOD’s Country Director in Kinshasa, highlighted that the DRC’s crisis reflects the devastating human consequences of UK aid reductions.
CAFOD and Caritas members have urged donor governments, including the UK, to direct more funds toward locally based groups that are saving lives on the ground. They called for urgent action to reverse funding cuts, release blocked resources, and prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the DRC.
