ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳

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The Republic of Congo is a resource-rich country with the potential to achieve? Sustainable Development Goal 2? and reach? zero hunger by 2030. 

However, despite an abundance of natural resources, at least 46.5 percent of the population live below the international poverty line of US$2.15 per day, and hunger and malnutrition are widespread.  

One in three people in the Republic of Congo is food insecure. At least 29.3 percent are moderately food insecure, and 4 percent are severely food insecure. Among children under 5, the global acute malnutrition level is 5.2 percent and chronic malnutrition is 19.6 percent.  

Food insecurity doubled from 2013 to 2023, due to multiple challenges. Food prices remain high because of persistent fuel shortages and outages. 

As an oil-dependent economy, the country is highly vulnerable to fluctuations in global oil prices. Meanwhile, youth unemployment stands at an alarming 42 percent, and fiscal instability ¨C including increasing debt levels ¨C has contributed to a downgrade in the country¡¯s credit rating.

The Republic of Congo hosts around 80,000 refugees, primarily from the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Refugees are concentrated in flood-prone areas with limited livelihood opportunities. Up to 300,000 ?people in the Republic of Congo, including refugees, are affected by flooding each year.

The ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ (WFP) responds to crises? and ?builds long-term resilience ?in 11 out of 12 departments in the Republic of Congo. WFP¡¯s role is increasingly shifting from operational to advisory, through building government capacity to carry out initiatives. 

What the ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ is doing in Congo

Crisis response
ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳provides food or cash assistance and nutrition support to 108,600 vulnerable people, including refugees, asylum seekers, returnees, local flood-affected populations, acutely malnourished children and women, and people living in urban areas who have been impacted by shocks and crises, including ethnic conflict, political violence and floods. Where appropriate, the assistance is combined with livelihood opportunities like food for assets, in which to receive food, beneficiaries create or rehabilitate assets like roads and infrastructure that enhance the economic resilience of their communities.
School meals
ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳Congo provides daily hot school meals to 126,000 schoolchildren, nearly half of whom are girls and 6,500 Indigenous, across 452 public schools in 7 departments. This improves children¡¯s nutrition and education. ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳uses a dual school feeding approach of providing food donated from overseas and home-grown food. Moving forward, ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳will scale up the home-grown approach to source directly from Congolese smallholder farmers and spur the local economy. ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳is also transitioning to focus on strengthening the Government¡¯s capacity to run a national school meals programme. In 2024, ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳transferred 25 pilot school canteens to Government management.
Building of national capacities
ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳supports the design and implementation of the National School Feeding Policy and works with the Government and fellow UN Agencies to ensure social protection interventions are effective, equitable and inclusive of the most marginalized populations, such as Indigenous Peoples. ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳also strengthens the country¡¯s institutional knowledge on climate change adaptation and supports the Government in developing targeted climate services.
Support for smallholder farmers
ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳provides smallholder farmers with technical support and training to boost their food production, storage and transport to markets. ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳offers equipment and training in innovative agricultural techniques, including crop rotation, agroforestry, post-harvest management and conservation practices. Additionally, farmers are trained in mechanized processing for cassava and banana, which help enhance their production capacity. ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳also assists farmers in managing small-scale farms catering to local market demands, including school canteens, urban markets and surrounding communities. ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳also empowers smallholder farmers in adapting to climate change by strengthening climate-resilient rural livelihoods.
Logistics support
Building on its globally recognized supply chain expertise and infrastructure, ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳provides UN agencies, the Government and other partners with on-demand logistics and supply chain services. Using a comprehensive logistics network¡ªincluding warehousing, ground transport, river transport, and airplane flights¡ªÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳ensures that humanitarian and development assistance reaches all regions, including remote and hard-to-access areas. In 2024, ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳facilitated the delivery of 4,700 metric tons of food and emergency supplies. ÐÓ°ÉÂÛ̳Congo also resumed UN Humanitarian Air Service flights in 2024, which had been suspended since 2022, to reach as well as repatriate refugees.

Partners and donors

Achieving Zero Hunger is the work of many. Our work in Congo is made possible by the support and collaboration of our partners and donors, including:

Contacts

Office

Avenue du G¨¦n¨¦ral de Gaulle BP 1036. Brazzaville, Republic of Congo
Brazzaville
Congo - Brazzaville

Phone
+242 06 668 7493
Fax
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