COMMUNITY · EASTERN DRC · FOOD AND NUTRITION
Food and Nutrition Support for Ebola-Affected Communities in Eastern DRC
Supporting vulnerable families affected by conflict, displacement, food insecurity, and recurring infectious-disease outbreaks in Goma and surrounding communities in North Kivu.
Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is currently facing an Ebola outbreak within an already severe humanitarian crisis. In North Kivu, prolonged armed conflict and repeated displacement have disrupted livelihoods, food markets, healthcare access, and ordinary community support. Families affected by the outbreak may therefore be confronting disease risk, loss of income, displacement, and food insecurity at the same time.
PRIORITY PARTNERSHIP NEEDED NOW
A registered charitable or fiscal partner
The initiative is seeking an established nonprofit or charitable organization that is legally able to receive contributions, conduct due diligence, oversee the use of funds, and support an accountable grant or project arrangement with a verified organization in eastern DRC.
No particular country is required. A Canadian organization may be the most practical first option because Resonance is based in Canada, but suitability depends on the organization’s legal authority, international experience, financial controls, donor reach, and willingness to supervise the project—not simply its country of registration.
Funds: registered partner → verified local partner · Reporting: local partner → registered partner and Resonance
Financial contributions are not yet being accepted. The accountable partnership must be established first.
How the Current Crisis Developed
- November 2021: The M23 armed movement re-emerged, beginning the present cycle of escalating conflict in eastern DRC. Fighting and territorial expansion subsequently displaced large numbers of people across North Kivu.
- January 2025: Fighting reached Goma and sharply intensified the humanitarian crisis, disrupting shelter, food, water, transport, healthcare, and aid operations across the region.
- May 2026: The Democratic Republic of the Congo confirmed a new Ebola outbreak caused by Bundibugyo virus. On 17 May 2026, the World Health Organization determined that the outbreak constituted a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
- August 2026: With Ebola transmission continuing in North Kivu and other eastern provinces, Resonance began developing this food and nutrition initiative and seeking accountable local, humanitarian, and international partnerships.
Current Situation
According to the World Health Organization, as of 12 August 2026, the Democratic Republic of the Congo had reported 4,665 confirmed cases of Bundibugyo virus disease, including 2,184 deaths and 965 recoveries. Cases had been reported across 54 health zones in six provinces, including 12 health zones in North Kivu. WHO noted that insecurity, population displacement, attacks on health services, and limited access to food, water, shelter, and healthcare were obstructing the response.
The food emergency extends beyond people directly infected with Ebola. The World Food Programme reports that 26.5 million people in DRC face acute food insecurity, including 2.65 million people in Ebola-affected health zones. It also reports 7.8 million internally displaced people nationwide and 3.2 million children under five affected by chronic malnutrition.
Situation figures are time-sensitive. Ebola figures are dated 12 August 2026; food-security figures reflect the latest WFP information available when this page was updated on 26 August 2026.
Why This Initiative Matters
This initiative does not provide Ebola diagnosis or medical treatment. Its purpose is to develop locally coordinated food and nutrition support for vulnerable households affected by the outbreak and the surrounding humanitarian crisis.
Reliable access to food can help families meet essential needs during an outbreak and the difficult period of recovery that follows. It may reduce the need for vulnerable households to travel in search of supplies, support children and medically vulnerable people, and strengthen community stability while health and humanitarian teams carry out their specialized work.
The initiative therefore focuses on the wider human conditions surrounding the outbreak: hunger, disrupted livelihoods, displacement, and the loss of ordinary sources of support.
Proposed Areas of Support
Working through verified local and humanitarian partners, the initiative is being developed to support:
- Emergency food assistance for outbreak-affected and displaced households
- Nutritional support for children, pregnant and breastfeeding women, older adults, and other vulnerable people
- Safe, locally appropriate food procurement and distribution
- Coordination between nutrition, community, health, and humanitarian programmes
- Recovery assistance for families whose livelihoods have been disrupted
- Transparent monitoring and reporting on the use of project resources
Any programme must be community-informed, culturally appropriate, responsive to current security conditions, and coordinated with organizations that understand the region.
Developing a Local Partnership
Resonance is currently exploring a partnership with the Conseil de Gouvernance Communautaire de Goma, a community-based organization in Goma, North Kivu. The proposed partner may assist with identifying community needs and coordinating locally appropriate food and nutrition support.
The organization’s legal, governance, banking, programme, and reporting documentation is currently being reviewed. No organization will be presented as the formal fundraising or implementation partner until this verification and a written partnership agreement are complete.
Current Stage and Support Outreach
Initiative development and partnership outreach began in August 2026. The project is presently in the partnership-development and due-diligence stage. Financial contributions are not yet being accepted through Resonance.
Before fundraising begins, the initiative will require a verified implementation partner, a current community needs assessment, a defined budget, appropriate safeguarding and financial controls, an accountable international payment channel, and a clear schedule for project and expenditure reporting.
If the local organization provides a dated formal appeal or community request, that original request date and document status will be added to this page separately from the date on which Resonance began developing the initiative.
Looking Ahead
The long-term goal is to establish a responsible pathway through which international supporters can help strengthen food security and nutritional resilience in communities affected by conflict, displacement, and recurring disease outbreaks—without duplicating existing humanitarian work or making promises that cannot be verified.
Organizations and professionals with relevant experience in eastern DRC, humanitarian response, nutrition, food security, public health, or accountable international fundraising are welcome to begin a partnership conversation.
Initiative status: Partnership and accountability arrangements are currently being developed. Resonance is not yet accepting financial contributions for this initiative.