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FAO / BECHDOL VISIT EASTERN DRC

Deputy Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Beth Bechdol concluded Tuesday (26 Nov) a seven-day mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), aiming to raise awareness of the severe food security situation on the ground and mobilize support to reverse the alarming trend.

Language English, French

Duration 4m11s

Edit Version International

Video Type Video News Release (VNR)

Date 12/03/2024 2:38 PM

File size 553.64 MB

Unique ID UF212HJ

Production details and shotlist

Shotlist STORY: FAO / BECHDOL VISIT EASTERN DRC
TRT: 4:11
SOURCE: FAO
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT FAO ON SCREEN
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH /FRENCH /NATS

DATELINE: 22-25 NOVEMBER 2024, GOMA / BUKAVU, DEMOCRATIC REUBLIC OF CONGO

SHOTLIST:

23 NOVEMBER 2024, RUSAYO 2 IDP CAMP, RUSAYO, NORTH KIVU, DRC

1. Wide shot, delegation walking through camp
2. Various shots, kids in camp
3. Pan left, delegation in camp
4. Med shot, Bechdol talking to an IDP woman
5. Various aerial shots of the camp

25 NOVEMBER 2024, BUKAVU, SOUTH KIVU, DRC

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Beth Bechdol, Deputy Director-General, FAO:
“The places that we've been able to visit North and South Kivu and others here in the eastern part of the country are where you see some of the highest levels of food insecurity. in fact, you know, majority of the people in these camps are in this IPC phase four, which is emergency, bordering on IPC five catastrophe.”

23 NOVEMBER 2024, RUSAYO 2 IDP CAMP, RUSAYO, NORTH KIVU, DRC
7. Wide shot, an FAO micro-garden in camp
8. Various shots, Bechdol and Minister of Agriculture of the DRC Gregoire Mutshail Mutomb visiting Ange’s Riziki rabbit farm

25 NOVEMBER 2024, BUKAVU, SOUTH KIVU, DRC

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Beth Bechdol, Deputy Director-General, FAO:
“First of all, it's really important to never lose sight of the importance of data generation and really understanding that localized context of what's the need. This is done by extensive surveying of households being here on the ground and really understanding the nature of the food insecurity problems within an IDP camp, for example. But the second area that I think we really are working to prioritize and bring more attention to are these emergency agricultural interventions and the importance of, alongside traditional humanitarian support and assistance, providing seeds, livestock feed, animal nutrition, fertilizers, other inputs, animal vaccines, and these breeding animals that we've been able to see here rabbits, chickens, support for a fisheries and aquaculture space as well.”

23 NOVEMBER 2024, RUSAYO 2 IDP CAMP, RUSAYO, NORTH KIVU, DRC

10. Various shots, delegation visiting community garden

25 NOVEMBER 2024, BUKAVU, SOUTH KIVU, DRC

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Beth Bechdol, Deputy Director-General, FAO:
“I think also equally important, beyond what a fellow brings as a technical agency to be able to provide those kinds of services and products. We also have a really unique offering because of our relationship with national governments. And there's a role for national governments to play here in terms of better policies that support access to land, that put better infrastructure, support into countries that need better access to markets they need access to, to ports. They need to be able to build value chains for these products and commodities, not just simple commodities for consumption.”

23 NOVEMBER 2024, RUSAYO 2 IDP CAMP, RUSAYO, NORTH KIVU, DRC

12. Wide shot, Bechdol and minister in the field
13. SOUNDBITE (French) Gregoire Mutshail Mutomb, Minister of Agriculture of the DRC:
“We are very happy with the micro-gardening, with the school gardens, with other support we received from FAO to farming activities - the distribution of seeds, the dissemination of agricultural kits. All this helps to reduce the burden for populations who live in very difficult conditions.”

25 NOVEMBER 2024, BUKAVU, SOUTH KIVU, DRC

14. Aerial shot, hills of South Kivu
15. Wide shot, Bechdol exiting helicopter
16. Various shots, delegation at the Kashusha fish hatchery
17. Pan right, delegation visiting seed multiplication site
18. Various shots, delegation at INERA laboratory
19. Various shots, meeting with Dimitra Club

Script Deputy Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Beth Bechdol concluded Tuesday (26 Nov) a seven-day mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), aiming to raise awareness of the severe food security situation on the ground and mobilize support to reverse the alarming trend.
Together with FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa, Abebe Haile-Gabriel, and Director of the FAO’s Office of Emergencies and Resilience, Rein Paulsen, Bechdol met conflict-affected people as well as government officials, donor partners, and aid workers to scale up sustained response to persistently high levels of hunger.
They stressed the need to boost funding in emergency agricultural aid, scale up emergency aid efforts and strengthen resilience of vulnerable populations in areas severely affected by high levels of acute food insecurity, including the internally displaced people’s (IDP) sites.
According to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis released in October, between July and December 2024, approximately 25.6 million people in the DRC, or 22 percent of the population analysed, are experiencing high acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or above). For the first time, the IPC analysis included IDP sites in the eastern provinces and the results are alarming. Most IDP sites are classified as IPC Phase 4 (Crisis). Projections for early 2025 suggest a similar outlook unless effective assistance is provided.
“The places that we've been able to visit in North and South Kivu and others here in the eastern part of the country are where you see some of the highest levels of food insecurity. In fact, the majority of the people in these camps are in IPC Phase 4, which is emergency, bordering on IPC 5 – Catastrophe,” Bechdol said.
The FAO high-level delegation was joined by government officials, UN and local partner organizations. They met people on the frontlines of the humanitarian crisis and observed the implementation of FAO projects on the ground. They visited the Rusayo 2 IDP site outside Goma, where FAO is assisting IDP’s affected by the conflict with Cash+, which combines unconditional cash transfers with micro-gardening and livestock production inputs, as well as the FAO-supported market-gardening production site run by elderly women in the village of Mugunga.

SOUNDBITE (English) Beth Bechdol, Deputy Director-General, FAO:
“First of all, it's really important to never lose sight of the importance of data generation and really understanding the localized context of what's needed. This is done by extensive surveying of households being here on the ground and really understanding the nature of the food insecurity problems within an IDP camp, for example. The second area that I think we really are working to prioritize and bring more attention to are these emergency agricultural interventions and the importance of – alongside traditional humanitarian support and assistance – providing seeds, livestock feed, animal nutrition, fertilizers, other inputs, animal vaccines, and these breeding animals that we've been able to see here… rabbits, chickens, support for a fisheries and aquaculture space as well.”
Bechdol also emphasized FAO’s important cooperation with the national government, a crucial partner in implementing emergency agricultural interventions.

SOUNDBITE (English) Beth Bechdol, Deputy Director-General, FAO:
“Equally important, beyond what FAO brings as a technical agency, is to be able to provide those kinds of services and products. We also have a really unique offering because of our relationship with national governments. And there's a role for national governments to play here in terms of better policies that support access to land, that put better infrastructure, support into countries that need better access to markets. They need access to ports. They need to be able to build value chains for their products and commodities, not just simple commodities for consumption.”

Joining the Deputy Director-General on her field visit in the IDP camp, the Minister of Agriculture of the DRC Gregoire Mutshail Mutomb expressed his appreciation for the long-term partnership between FAO and the Congolese government, especially in the context of emergencies and resilience. “We are very happy with the micro-gardening, with the school gardens, with other support we received from FAO to farming activities – the distribution of seeds, the dissemination of agricultural kits. All this helps to reduce the burden for populations who live in very difficult conditions,” the Minister said.

In South Kivu, the delegation also toured the FAO-supported fish hatchery and high-quality seed multiplication site as well as INERA Research Institute with which FAO has established a robust partnership to foster agricultural innovation and improve productivity in the region. The delegation also visited Dimitra Clubs – a pivotal FAO initiative that empowers rural populations, in particular women and children, to bring about needed change in their communities.
These projects have demonstrated that support for local food production and timely access to seeds and other agricultural inputs are crucial for sustaining people’s livelihoods and preventing a larger food crisis.

The DRC faces a prolonged humanitarian crisis, compounded by armed conflict, natural disasters, disease outbreaks, currency depreciation and high food prices. To break the vicious cycle, it is crucial to help vulnerable populations get back on their feet, restore food production and build long-term resilience to future shocks.
FAO is currently assisting 25 000 vulnerable households, or approximately 150 000 people, in North Kivu and Ituri through Cash+ programmes. In South Kivu, FAO has reached over 50 000 vulnerable households this year. The Organization will continue to work on the ground to support vulnerable populations to cope with these numerous challenges and provide multi-sectoral assistance to strengthen food production and generate income for those most in need.
To sustain and expand its efforts, FAO is appealing for $330 million in 2025 to support emergency agricultural and resilience interventions – which is a slight increase from last year due to worsening food security and livelihood conditions. With these funds, FAO is planning to reach just over three million people.

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